You Hold My Heart In Your Paws
by ByakuSharingan
Summary: Learning how to live alone after getting caught cheating and being the cause for your lover's tragedy is tough. But learning how to cope when the one you love doesn't even know who you are, that is tougher.
1. Realizations & Reality

**You Hold My Heart In Your Paws**

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto. Never had, don't, and probably never will. And that makes me very sad.

It was their 2-Year Anniversary, and Sasuke Uchiha still could not get over that fact. Two years of sweet, cheesy, passionate love, and all with the one that Sasuke knew he was going to spend the rest of his life with. Yes, this was only the beginning. 2 years of countless more to come, and Sasuke's grin only got bigger thinking of it. He clutched the steering wheel of his sleek black Porsche (a gift from his parents before they moved back to Japan) with his left hand and his gift to his loved one in his right. He knew that his boyfriend would like it very much; he had a thing for orange anyway. Sasuke knew that getting the gift 3 months prior to their anniversary was a little…much, but hey, love makes you do things you don't see yourself doing ever, much less often.

In the neatly wrapped medium-sized gift box was a stitched orange baby fox. Tiny, bead-sized blue gems for eyes, and 3 adorable whisker-like marks stitched on each cheek, fanning from its nose. What made it stand out, and what made it special though, was what it was holding in its paws. On a scarlet heart that was right about the same size as the fox's body, were sewn incredibly neatly, the words 'You hold my heart in your paws. Sasuke had to pay quite a bit for the fox, as it was purely hand sewn, but it was just a small sacrifice to make in order to see the bright grin and sparking ocean-blue eyes of his own little fox.

Naruto Uzumaki, the epitome of perfect in Sasuke's eyes. Golden hair that reflected the sun's rays whenever he turned his head, perfect ocean, cerulean, sapphire, God, there was no definite shade to his ever-changing blue eyes, 3 thin, adorable whisker-like marks on each cheek that resembled the ones on the fox, a tiny little button nose, plump, pink and oh-so-kissable lips that just begged to be taken when put in his signature pout, and flawless caramel skin that stretched over a rather feminine and short build.

Naruto Uzumaki was…perfect, beautiful, stunning, amazing, gorgeous. Sasuke could have come up with more adjectives to describe his boyfriend, and hopefully future-spouse, but he had to focus on the road, dang it. His excitement to spend their special day with Naruto getting the best of him, Sasuke stepped on the pedal and zoomed off to meet his boyfriend, the one who held his fragile heart in the palm of his hand.

* * *

Locking the doors to his car and running as fast as he could up the stairs to his boyfriend's apartment at the 5th level, Sasuke realized that he was a half hour early than when they were supposed to meet. But, who could blame him for wanting to see his love earlier than supposed to, right?

Straightening his coat and tie, smoothing down is hair and wiping off the occasional bead of perspiration off of his face, Sasuke stood up straight, with his gift in a firm grip in his left hand, and knocked on the door. He immediately pulled back his hand, as though the door was burning hot, and began to shift his weight from foot to foot. To anyone who knew the Uchiha, it would seem completely out of character to see him act so nervously. Yes, it was completely unnerving and admittedly, a little bit hilarious to watch the Uchiha get so flustered over a simple date with his boyfriend of two years. However, Sasuke's got his own reasons for acting the way he is now.

This relationship that started when he was 20, and Naruto, 19, was and is his first ever one, and Sasuke knows that it is serious, and he feels like as though that he has finally found his significant other. Also, being the organized and perfect little person that he was, he could not handle ever disappointing his first ever boyfriend. He wanted to make this relationship last, he wanted it to work so badly because he loved Naruto. So much so that he is willing to give up just about anything and sacrifice just about anything to see Naruto smile and laugh and just be free. He planned everything that he did with Naruto such that it would all work to his favor, such that it would work to make Naruto be jubilant. He could never handle seeing Naruto getting upset or ever fall into depression because of whatever anyone did. He could never ever handle seeing Naruto become disappointed in something that Sasuke had done, and that was why he went all the way in terms of keeping Naruto happy. He wanted Naruto happy, and he showed Naruto in more ways than he could count, how much he loved him, as many times and in many different ways he could come up with.

He, of course, planned out their 2-year anniversary celebration quite perfectly, and it was all meant to be a surprise. He couldn't wait to see the ecstatic grin on his adorable fox's face, and all because of him. Bouncing on his toes again, Sasuke decided to knock on the door a second time, whilst checking his watch. _5.36pm_. Sasuke's nose scrunched up in thought. Naruto would usually answer the door almost immediately, unless he was taking a shower or sleeping.

A malicious grin formed on Sasuke's face at the thought of seeing his rather sexy boyfriend under the hot water of the shower, tantalizing skin glistening with water. He hoped that Naruto was actually in the shower, because little Sasuke, the one at the top, knew how to prioritize things and obviously doing kinky things in the shower under the running water came first before anything else he planned for the evening. Besides, little Sasuke #2, the one…down there, twitched a little at the thought of ramming itself into—

Sasuke shook his head and glared down at his zipper, scolding little Sasuke #2 for making little Sasuke #1 go onto the more 'indecent' part of his relationship. Standing up straight and thinking about his high school Chemistry teacher, old lady Ms. Jenkins, wearing a bikini immediately solved the problem of Naruto branding him a pervert once he takes notice of the rather prominent bulge in the other's' pants.

Gripping the brass door knob in his hand, Sasuke slowly but quietly turned it, satisfied that the door was unlocked. Slowly sliding the door open just a crack, Sasuke caught sight of the instant Ramen cups littering the floors, the messy living room, dining room, kitchen…basically the whole entire house. Noting that his boyfriend was nowhere to be found, Sasuke picked up even more of his courage and opened the door just enough for him to fit through. He had to bend his head down a little because fitting through a door that was just about the same height as you was rather difficult. Once he was inside the house, Sasuke made sure to close the door just as quietly and stepped on the clear patches of grey carpet that he could find, basically those spots that were not taken up by ramen cups, snack bar wrappers, soda cans, etc. _The dobe needs to clean, it's a pigsty in here!_ Sasuke crept about the house, and to anyone else it would have been laughable. Watching a 6'4' 22 year old 'spying' about the house of his 21 year old boyfriend in a suit was rather ridiculous.

Creeping closer and closer towards the bedroom, Sasuke could hear slight moans and pants that little Sasuke #2 immediately recognized. _The dobe wants to surprise me, huh?_ Little Sasuke #2 jumped in joy, and its owner's body immediately sped up in its pace to get to the bedroom. Trying his very best to remain calm and composed, Sasuke stood in front of his dobe's bedroom and relished in the sounds that were coming from the other side of the door, and they took Sasuke back to exactly a year ago, when he had his first time with his first boyfriend of their first year.

_**FLASHBACK**_

"Nn-nghh.. Ha-ah-haa, harder Sa-sasuke, oh God, deeper… please," Naruto moaned into his boyfriend of one year's neck, and met him halfway in his thrusts. He clutched harder onto the hair of Sasuke's head and arched his back in a perfect C when Sasuke went deeper than before, striking his prostate dead-on. Letting his mouth open in a silent scream of pleasure, Naruto dove into the ecstasy of it all, and his hips immediately went into frenzy.

Seeing those lips open up as a silent invitation, Sasuke dove in and captured those lips in one fluid motion, while at the same time grasping hold on his boyfriend's manhood and pumping it in time to his own thrusts. Relishing in the feel of their tongues battling against one another, teeth clashing and noses bumping, the identical coils in their stomachs were getting tighter and tighter and when completion demanded completion, their lips broke apart and both males gasped out the other's name, seed squirting everywhere, one on their chests, and the other in his boyfriend's ass.

Both panting heavily from the amazing orgasm that they had ever experienced, it took a while for them to calm down and come back down to earth from their high. Wiping away stray locks of blond hair away from the tempting forehead, Sasuke planted a light kiss, and slowly made his way down to those pink lips that he loved so much. Keeping it only light and chaste, Sasuke pulled away, and was amused to find Naruto's lips following his.

Naruto felt rather than hear the chuckle vibrate through his love's chest, and opened up his eyes only to realize exactly why Sasuke was laughing. Feeling his face burn an unhealthy shade of red, Naruto immediately glared at his lover and pouted, but the glare was rather pointless seeing as how he still had his boyfriend's dick up his ass. Blushing, not from embarrassment, Naruto pursed his lips together and wiggled his hips a little, hoping that Sasuke got the idea.

Sasuke, seeing as how adorably uncomfortable his boyfriend was getting after getting his virginity taken away, decided to save him from more embarrassment and pulled out, wincing slightly at the sudden cold air that made contact with his penis. Grabbing some tissues, Sasuke handed some to Naruto and instructed for them to clean up, before getting rid of them and snuggling with each other. As soon as Sasuke's body made contact with the bed, Naruto immediately cocooned himself into Sasuke's side, burying his face into his neck and breathing in the after-sex scent of his boyfriend.

Taking note of exactly how beautiful his boyfriend looked at that moment, eyes closed and lips formed into a serene and peaceful smile, Sasuke turned on his side and wrapped an arm around Naruto's slender waist, hugging him rather possessively. This was the boy he loved, the boy he loves, and the boy he will love for the rest of his life. This was the boy that he was positive—

"I love you Sasuke," a barely audible whisper.

Yes, he was positive that this was the boy that he would live the rest of his life with, and how Sasuke was ecstatic.

"I love you too, Naru."

* * *

Slowly sinking back into reality, Sasuke smiled and got ready to unlock the door—

"I love you so f-fu-fucking much N-Neji, oh God… Haa-haa, harder, please… I'm beg-begging you…"

Sasuke's body immediately stilled. He stood there, frozen in absolute shock and horror. God, hold on a minute, he had to have heard wrongly right? Naruto, his lovely, beautiful, significant other, did not just utter the name of his rival, in basically everything, in the heat of passion, right? That's right, Sasuke must have been mistaken. It must have been the adrenaline and excitement that were coursing through his veins at a hundred miles an hour, that's why he wasn't hearing things right, right?

Right.

Picking up more courage than he ever dared, Sasuke took in one deep breath, and pushed open the door… Only to a sight he had never wanted to see. _Ever._

There, on the very same bed that both Sasuke and Naruto made love on just three days ago, and exactly one year ago, was his boyfriend…and his rival, Neji Hyuuga. The son of the side branch of the Hyuuga family, he was a recognized prodigy, and also Sasuke's competitor in everything, and by everything, I do mean everything, looks, fame, fortune, and even girls. They were equally matched, and it pissed Sasuke off more often than not, to have to compete with someone when he didn't even plan to.

The Uchihas and the Hyuugas were the main business typhoons in the world, and both of their roots are traced back to Japan. They were constantly competing in terms of business and in terms of getting and bagging the same client. If one saw one party, they could bet their whole entire life that the other would be there as well. Sasuke's father, Fugaku Uchiha, was always on the edge and constantly stressed and overworked once he came back home from Uchiha Inc., and everyone in the Uchiha family knew that it was because of a certain Hizashi Hyuuga, the main head of the family, that was causing their own family head to return home in such a state. Little Sasuke, age 8, had prayed that one day their family would stop having to constantly fight with another one, over insignificant things such as fame and fortune (in little Sasuke's eyes), but it seemed that fate had hated him, and still does, when he realized that he was to be put in the same school, grade, and class as one Neji Hyuuga back in high school, a similar prodigy to himself. Straight A student, vice-president of the Student Council (with Sasuke being the president of course, and boy did he love to rub it in the other's face), and constantly having one girl, and the occasional guy, tailing him from behind.

How Sasuke loathed Neji, and the only other person that knew of his hatred towards the long-haired, lavender-eyed male, was his boyfriend, Naruto. He was there every single time Sasuke had to rant about Neji, over anything and basically everything that he was angry about had a link or two to the pale-eyed teen.

And now, looking at the scene before him, Sasuke knew that there were many more rants to come about, just that Naruto wouldn't be there to rant to.

There, on the same bed that they used to have their casual romps on, was Naruto, slender legs wrapped around a pale waist, caramel arms wrapped around wide, strong shoulders that were curtained by shampoo-commercial-worthy brown hair, and whose mouth, that same mouth that Sasuke dreamed off kissing for the rest of his life, was currently occupied with the mouth of another male.

Who wasn't Sasuke.

"OH GOD, RIGHT THERE," a shout of pure, unadulterated bliss reached Sasuke's ears, one that he knew was never directed at him, ever. Never once in their lovemaking sessions had Naruto seemed as relaxed, sated, excited, as he did on his own bed with Neji right then.

Never once.

And those two words were what broke Sasuke. Never once had he made Naruto feel as good as his own rival had. Never once had Sasuke made Naruto look so at peace, look so sated, look and feel so loved as he did right there. Never once had he made Naruto fully reach the greatest peaks of pleasure, as he thought he had.

Only Neji did. Only his rival did.

"NEJI!", a shout, one that sounded so full of passion broke Sasuke off of his frozen state, but he continued to stare blankly ahead of him, at the two glistening, perspiring bodies of his boyfriend, and soon to be ex-boyfriend, as well as his rival. The look that Naruto gave Neji after they both reached their climaxes was one that Sasuke never saw being directed at him, ever. It was one of pure love, pure innocent love, one that would probably last a lifetime.

"I love you Neji, so damn much." Those 7 words barely made it into the recesses of Sasuke's mind, but it absorbed it all the same.

Neji, his rival, had officially beat him in the one thing that Sasuke never wanted to be beat at. Neji had successfully stolen the heart of the boy that he practically ripped off of his chest and gave his heart to. Neji had successfully managed to bring down the Uchiha, in terms of wanting to ever feel loved back, in terms of wanting to experience his own little fairytale, no matter how small. Neji had officially taken Naruto, his beautiful angel, away from him. And…

It hurt.

It hurt so damn much.

As the two bodies shuffled and shoved about to make them comfortable, Naruto, noticing the time, immediately shot back up.

"Neji! You have to get out of here! Sas—" his words died on his lips as he turned towards the doorway, where he was instructing for Neji to get out from.

There stood, in all his mighty Uchiha glory, Sasuke, with the most pained, hurt, devastated and pathetic face that any Uchiha had ever shown. His right hand was clutching the brass doorknob in a painful grip, his knuckles were turning white. His left hand, the one holding onto the gift, the gift meant for his boyfriend of two years, two long, loving years, was shaking. His mouth was hanging open, just a fraction, and oh God, his eyes… Those were the worst. They were blank, void of all emotion, just like before he met Naruto, and all Naruto could do was gasp and push Neji off of his bed, wrap the covers around himself and rush to his boyfriend's side.

Naruto could already feel the start of his tears ripping at the sensitive tissues of his eyes, and he furiously tried his best to keep them in check and under control, but to no avail. The tears just kept coming, and they never wanted to stop. Gripping the ends of the covers around him even tighter, Naruto reached out a hand to hold Sasuke, to at least try to explain, explain and pray that Sasuke wouldn't leave him because of this, pray that Sasuke would give him a second chance.

"Sasuke! Oh God, Sasuke!" Naruto gasped as he finally managed to grasp onto Sasuke's muscular forearm.

That light contact of skin on skin broke Sasuke off of his reverie, and he turned his blank stare to Naruto's teary blue one, those eyes that Sasuke loved. Upon registering how his supposedly loyal boyfriend was dressed, wrapped only in bed covers that were still stained white from semen, that was obviously not his, Sasuke's face changed. It now clearly showed, in every nook and cranny, the pure disgust, hurt, betrayal, devastation and outright pain that Sasuke was experiencing right then.

"No, no, please, Sasuke, no, please, just listen to me! Just let me explain wh—" Naruto started panicking, voice going a hundred miles an hour, but was cut off by Sasuke.

"Explain what, Naruto?" Naruto immediately stilled. No, Sasuke never raised his voice, and he still didn't. It was the soft, calm and collected way that he spoke that completely unnerved Naruto. This was how Sasuke was like before, when they first met. This was the cold Sasuke, the one that would lock himself away from the world and brood in one corner, because he felt so insignificant that he didn't mix around with others. This was the old Sasuke that often cut himself due to high family expectations and school work. This was the old Sasuke, the one that fell into depression.

Naruto hated the old Sasuke.

"What do you have to explain?" Sasuke broke their gaze, and looked back up onto the bed, where Neji was laying on the other side, rubbing his head where he probably hit the floor, all the while with a satisfied smirk on his face. All of it was meant for Sasuke.

He knew he broke Sasuke.

He knew he won.

And he was happy.

Sasuke couldn't blame Neji for that, he had no right to. Instead, he calmly looked at the ground where his boy—, no, ex-boyfriend's feet were, and spoke in a voice as dead and as cold as ice.

"Explain how you were so totally caught up in the passion of having Neji's dick shoved right up your ass?" As Sasuke said those words, his mouth contorted into one of pure disgust.

"No, please, Sasuke, no, love—" Naruto started to say, but Sasuke, who was giving him the coldest, most iciest and fury-filled glare that he had ever seen being directed at him, cut him off.

"Don't you dare call me that when I now know that I'm not alone," Sasuke said through gritted teeth. He could feel his tears coming on, but he would not break down here. Not here, never here.

Naruto immediately recoiled, like he was slapped in the face, and the tears immediately started to fall. Like a running tap that refused to stop, Naruto started sobbing, his body shaking and convulsing with his sharp intakes of breaths and choked sobs. "Sasuke…" Naruto started, and reached out a shaky, small hand in hopes of getting to at least wipe away the tears that he himself had caused.

Gripping the gift in his hand even more tightly, creating dents in the cardboard, Sasuke took a deep breath to calm himself down. He never got angry often; he was a patient guy. But everyone knew that those who rarely showed their anger were the ones who exploded once they've reached their limit, and Sasuke was close. He couldn't afford to get all grenade-like right now, not in front of Neji, and giving him the satisfaction, of what exactly Sasuke himself didn't know. Taking a few deep breaths, and closing his eyes to the heartbreaking sight of his boyfriend and his bed, Sasuke managed to collect himself.

"How long…?" Sasuke whispered out, the lump in his throat preventing him from raising his voice any higher or louder. He knew he shouldn't have asked, because, being a prodigy and living up to his name, Sasuke knew that this was not a one-time thing, but he prayed to God that he was wrong. He loved Naruto, and he knew that he might be able to close one eye to this event if it were to be their first time, because that was exactly how far and how much he loved Naruto.

The question obviously caught Naruto by surprise, as he instantly retracted his hand and clutched it together with his other one, the one holding onto the pieces of cloth covering his lithe body. He knew Sasuke knew the answer. He knew that Sasuke wanted to hear something other than the obvious truth. He knew that Sasuke wanted him to lie, so that maybe their relationship could still be saved.

But bitter truths are always better than the sweetest lies, as the saying goes.

"…6 months," the barely audible whisper left Naruto's lips, and his head immediately snapped to the side, a stinging pain in his right cheek. Using both hands to cover his injured cheek, where no doubt a bright red print would be forming, Naruto forgot about the way he was dressed, and the bed covers that were keeping him clothed immediately dropped to the floor, exposing him for the whole entire world to see.

Naruto's own semen that had forgotten to be wiped off littered his body, all dried up. The faint trickle of Neji's own sperm from Naruto's behind was fairly obvious, and Sasuke could see as bright as day that Naruto's body was tainted. It was no longer his, it was Neji's. He wasn't the one who sucked random, bright red hickeys randomly all over his slender form. It wasn't him who left bite marks around Naruto's nipples.

It wasn't him.

It was Neji.

Sasuke stared down at his left hand, relishing in the sting of it, and looked back up at Naruto, who was currently frantically trying his best to cover himself up while attending to his injured cheek. Naruto was doing his best to keep his choked sobs down to a minimum, but he was failing miserably. His bright blue eyes were just ocean slits, tears constantly staining his whiskered cheeks.

"Please… Sasuke, please, don't—"

"I loved you Naruto, I thought that you were the one, only to realize that today, you'd kick me aside and willingly spread your legs wide for another male with similar status."

"You're nothing but a disgusting whore."

And Sasuke left the building, calmly leaving the apartment of his boy–, no, _ex_-boyfriend, shaking so much with suppressed fury and shock and _hurt_.

Upon hearing those words from his, officially, ex-boyfriend, Naruto grabbed at his heart and sank down to his knees, his cries getting louder and louder with each dignified step that Sasuke took away from Naruto, away from his love, away from the bed that they always had passionate sex in. Hearing those words, those heart breaking words from his own boyfriend, Naruto couldn't take it.

What Sasuke said was true.

And it hurt.

It hurt so much, and Naruto's heart clenched so painfully that he couldn't even begin to hear his own sobs. The faint walking away of Sasuke, and the ringing of his ears were the only things that registered themselves in Naruto's head. Clenching his eyes shut, Naruto braced himself for the echoing sound of the door slamming, knowing exactly what it would mean.

When Sasuke reached the front door, he grabbed it and pulled it open, and made sure to slam it extra hard. As soon as he did that, a pained scream resounded from Naruto's apartment, no doubt its owner's, and Sasuke knew what he had officially done.

That resounding bang of the door against its frame signified the end of Sasuke's little fairy tale.

They were over.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hey guys! This is my first ever fanfic, and I am really new here on , so please go easy on me! If you've enjoyed it, kindly hit the review button down below, and tell me what you've enjoyed! And if you didn't, please let me know how I can improve my writing skills via the reviews as well! I'd really appreciate it, and by letting me know what I've done badly, then I can write better ones for you guys! Thank you so much for reading!

ByakuSharingan


	2. Fights & Flights

**You Hold My Heart In Your Paws**

_Chapter 2: Fights &amp; Flights_

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto. Dang it.

* * *

Grasping at his chest, Naruto's lithe frame convulsed with his sobs, the choked, pathetic sounds rebounding against the white, fraying walls of his bedroom. The pained cries escaping those plump lips were heartbreaking to anyone, including the other occupant in the room, the one who was responsible for the ending of the little fairytale romance that Sasuke once held so dearly to himself.

Picking himself off of the hardwood flooring, Neji silently grabbed his boxers that had landed haphazardly at the foot of the bed, and slipped them on just as silently. He cautiously walked over to the other male, towards the pitiful sight, and braced himself for the blow that Naruto would most definitely be giving to him.

On the other hand, Naruto's mind was still trying it's very best to get rid of the haze that formed over it when he first saw Sasuke. It was trying its very best to clutch onto any bit of reality and sanity, anything that seemed plausible, believable, in hopes of keeping its owner grounded and from falling away into the depths of madness. It all happened too fast, and so quickly, that Naruto felt like the world was spinning and he was floating a good six feet away from his body. In a way, he was. Considering the fact that he _betrayed and backstabbed his_ loyal, amazing, wonderful, faithful, magnificent, God, Naruto's limited vocabulary prevented him from coming up with any more adjectives to describe his perfect boyfriend, _in the worst possible way imaginable._

Thoughts flittered about and around Naruto's mind, many of them taking on Sasuke's voice and repeating his departing words,_ 'You're nothing but a disgusting whore'_. Naruto clutched at his head, wanting the voice to just dissipate and get out, to stop taunting him and laying out the truth of what he really was. It hurt to be reminded of what Sasuke thought of him. It cut him deeply, and the gash that those words created in Naruto's heart was so huge and gaping, Naruto knew it would take much too long a time to heal.

Screaming at the top of his lungs, Naruto prayed to God that the earth would just split open right beneath his feet and swallow him whole, because he knew he deserved it. He knew what he had to done to Sasuke. He knew what he had done to the perfect, in too many ways to count, Sasuke.

He had been there for Naruto, through thick and thin. He was Naruto's first friend in high school, and slowly, gradually became his best friend, and was always there to rescue Naruto from the jocks who would amuse themselves by picking on those weaker than them. Sasuke had been there for Naruto whenever he needed help in schoolwork, whenever he needed an escape from reality, and whenever he just wanted Sasuke to be around. Sasuke had always been there for Naruto, and when brotherly love slowly morphed into something much greater, Naruto feared for Sasuke's reaction.

Imagine Naruto's surprise when Sasuke ended up telling him that he felt the exact same way, and he showed and showered Naruto with love, in so many different ways, and had always tried and did his best to be the best boyfriend for Naruto. He would let Naruto do whatever he wanted, as long as it made him happy, but always drew the line when he knew it would affect Naruto negatively, be it physically or emotionally. He was always looking out for Naruto, and Sasuke knew what put a smile to Naruto's face, and would and had sacrificed anything and everything to be able to see it.

Sasuke had put every part of himself into the relationship. He had put in so much effort into the relationship, into Naruto. Sasuke had shown and told Naruto countless times how much he loved him, how he wished that he could spend every single waking moment of his life just being by Naruto's side. Sasuke had done everything and gone out of his way to make Naruto happy, even if he himself had to sacrifice his sleep, food, and time. To Sasuke, Naruto meant the whole entire world, and he proved that to Naruto countless of times, more times than the blue-eyed fox could count.

Realizing what exactly Sasuke had done for him, and what he himself gave his fucking perfect boyfriend back as a 'thank-you' gift, Naruto winced in disgust at himself. His boyfriend was willing to give up anything for Naruto, probably even his own life, but he would throw the thought of Sasuke aside in an instant, and, quoting Sasuke's words, 'willingly spread his legs wide for another male with similar status'.

Naruto visibly winced at that abrupt thought that, no matter how much he tried, remained imprinted onto the back of his eyelids. Grabbing at his hair, Naruto let out the most broken scream that he could muster, as he opened his eyes and stared down at the evidence between his legs, that faint stream of white semen from his ass, the evidence that declared to the whole world that he had cheated on his boyfriend.

"Naruto…" the softest whisper that echoed throughout the bedroom broke Naruto off of his reverie. That voice, that voice that belonged to the one person that Sasuke hated with his whole entire being, that voice that belonged to the one person that Naruto had willingly had sex with, that one person that was enough to bring down Sasuke; he was still present in the room. Thus, laying bare the truth about Naruto's actions, declaring to the world that yes, he had officially cheated on his boyfriend.

Upon realizing that thought, Naruto opened up his mouth and let a pain-filled cry break through. It wasn't the fact that he had sex with his boyfriend's rival that caused that. No, it was the realization that Naruto had willingly done it. He had willingly allowed himself to be pleasured by someone other than his faithful and possible future spouse, had willingly engaged in sexual intercourse, and had willingly allowed to take on the path to break his beloved's heart. He had willingly done it, purposely permanently damaging Sasuke.

Naruto felt lower than the lowest.

As soon as he heard that scream, Neji was by his side in an instant, wrapping his pale, strong arms around the petite figure and pulling him into his chest. Neji could feel exactly how much Naruto was shaking by, and the sobs that wrecked through his small frame and the cries that left those soft lips were enough to tug at Neji's heartstrings. He held the boy even tighter than before, and used one hand to smooth down the ruffled blond locks, trying his best to calm Naruto down with just his words.

"It's okay, I've got you."

Those words that left the thin pale pink lips of Neji's did nothing to soothe Naruto. In fact, it only made him worse.

It only made him realize exactly how much he loved hearing those words from Sasuke instead, hearing and feeling his voice just wash all over him, soothing him, bringing with it the whispered sweet nothings that Sasuke would mindlessly utter during their post-sex cuddling. How Naruto missed hearing those words, and now, having to hear them from what he would call 'second-best', Naruto's heart broke into much smaller pieces than it already was in, and Naruto knew that those pieces would take a long time to be put back together, considering the fact that Sasuke was the only one capable of healing his heart.

But was that still true? Was Sasuke really the only one capable of healing him, when he declared out loud, not too long ago, that he loved Neji, the one who was with him, comforting him right then? Was Neji still 'second-best'? Naruto's little mind was just as confused with its own feelings just as it was with whatever had happened not too long ago. Who did he love? Did he love Sasuke? Had he even loved Sasuke? Does he love Neji?

Why did he even agree to this stupid relationship with Neji anyway? What did the past 6 months even mean? Why had he come back to Neji willingly, again and again, every single week, when he knew he had Sasuke back at home to help fulfill his sexual desires?

Naruto abruptly stopped his train of thought, and realized exactly what it meant. He was willing to sacrifice his little fairytale romance for a couple of nights of pleasure. He was willing to sacrifice his and Sasuke's relationship for the sake of his own selfish needs. He was willing to sacrifice Sasuke's happiness and heart for the sake of his own sexual desires.

He was willing to hurt Sasuke, damage him completely, all for a good fuck.

_God, I really am a whore._

Breaking down into more sobs, Naruto's mind tried it's best to wrap around the current situation.

His boyfriend had just caught him cheating on him with his own rival, _on their anniversary_.

Sasuke's face at catching Naruto red-handed flashed through Naruto's mind, and he immediately gritted his teeth at the amount of hurt he saw rolling off of his boyfriend's face. Sasuke's last words to him and the echoing bang of the door replayed themselves in Naruto's mind, and he, for the first time in the past 2 years, imagined his life without Sasuke.

No Sasuke to see, no Sasuke to hear, no Sasuke to hold, and no Sasuke to touch. But the one fact that stood out the most amongst all the others, was that for Naruto, there would be _no more Sasuke to love_.

That was then that Naruto knew for a fact that he loved Sasuke. Imagining his life without a particular Sasuke Uchiha in it, was painful, and Naruto visibly flinched, and hastily got out of Neji's hold.

"Naruto…?" Neji called out softly towards him. He was obviously shocked when Naruto, out of the blue, flinched out of his hold, and never once looked up at him. He knew the thoughts that were going through Naruto's mind right then and there, and he couldn't help but let anger take over him, knowing for a fact that Naruto was going to break off this—this 'unique' relationship that they had.

Keeping and making sure that his anger was still well under control, Neji nodded determinedly to himself, knowing that he had to snag this blonde, right then and there. Why? Because he was a Hyuuga, and he was currently holding onto Uchiha property. He couldn't let Naruto crawl back to Sasuke, that would signify that Neji had lost, signify that Sasuke, even though he had lost the battle, had won the war.

No.

Neji could not afford that. He could not afford losing his face to the bastardly Sasuke. He still had his ground to stand on, and a war to win. So what if he was being a selfish bastard? He still had his Hyuuga pride to uphold. He wouldn't let some meek person like Naruto keep him from getting his prize, and 'prize' meaning watching Sasuke die, a little by little, slowly, by having to face the fact that the love of his life had been taken away by a fucking Hyuuga.

So what if he didn't love Naruto? He was just a tool to get what Neji had always wanted, to successfully break the Uchiha until he couldn't stand on his own two feet any longer. He was just someone to use in getting what he wanted, what would determine the outcome between the constant battle between Hyuuga Corp. and Uchiha Inc.

Naruto was nobody.

He was just a tool.

Nodding resolutely to himself, and making sure that his concerned mask was back on his face, Neji moved to tilt Naruto's face, grasping his little chin with his index and thumb. Slowly, he tilted the rounded face upwards, making sure to lock gazes with him, and Neji, just for show, gasped.

The indefinite shade of blue was a deep cerulean, and was covered by a thin veil of salty tears. The crystal-clear water constantly streamed down the scarred cheeks, reminding Neji of the rivers that his family would often sail on back during the time they were on their World Tour in Venice. The button nose was all red, and was scrunched up constantly, the sounds of sniffs making their through to Neji's ears. The plump bottom lip that Naruto loved to pout with was being held behind a pristine row of white front teeth, and the chin that he was holding onto was trembling from the effort of keeping sobs at bay.

Even when he was heartbroken, Naruto was beautiful.

A sharp gasp cut through the sudden still and cold air of the bedroom, and Neji took a while to realize that Naruto was trying his hardest to speak, trying his best to quell down his cries in order to get whatever Neji did not want to hear, ever, since the start of this relationship, out.

"Y-you're no-not t-the o-one th-that I-I wa-want, N-Neji," Naruto whispered, and as soon as those words left his lips, Neji's fist, the one that was holding onto his chin, met with his face.

Neji knew that Naruto was going to say those words. Neji had thought that he had prepared himself for that devastating blow, but with anger reeling through his veins at a much greater speed than he ever thought possible for a calm and collected guy like himself, Neji could not have held himself back even if he tried.

He didn't want his plan on ruining Sasuke Uchiha to backfire. He had planned it out so that it would have worked to his favor, and ended up breaking Sasuke so that he would have emerged the champion. He had thought that his plan was fool-proof, considering the fact about how loving he had been towards Naruto during the past 6 months. He had thought that the amount of attention and love that he had showed and given and showered Naruto with was enough to override that of Sasuke's 2-year's worth. He had thought that Naruto would finally wake up and realize that hey, Sasuke was the wrong choice, and Neji was the right one, and would finally crawl into his arms, making Neji's plan a success.

But no, in fact, Naruto had to go all crazy and unexpected on him, and ended up crawling back to his pathetic boyfriend, therefore successfully using Neji Neji _fucking_ Hyuuga had been used by the stupid and pathetic Naruto Uzumaki.

What a blow to his ego.

And before he could have even thought about stopping himself, Neji removed his fingers from Naruto's chin, clenched his fist as hard as he could, and slammed it into Naruto's pretty little face. He felt more than heard the satisfying crunch of Naruto's little button nose breaking, and the warmth that spread across his knuckles was no doubt Naruto's blood.

The knowledge of successfully hurting something that belonged to his rival, adrenaline started pumping through Neji's veins at an impossible pace. Having to hurt something/someone was one thing, but having to hurt something that was Uchiha property was another. It brought a thrill to Neji like no other; because he knew he was indirectly hurting and causing even more grief and sorrow for that bastard of an Uchiha

And that thought made Neji ecstatic.

A malicious grin seeped onto his face as Neji pulled back his fist and rammed it back into Naruto's face, making sure to hit his eye. Feeling the eyeball underneath his fingers push back into its socket brought Neji even deeper into the depths of insanity, as with each punch that he threw at the face of Sasuke's little fox, grew the hatred that he had towards the Uchiha.

Disregarding the pained cries that were let out from Naruto's pink lips, the wetness of the cheeks that he constantly attacked, the bruises along Naruto's eyes, jaw and nose, Neji continued abusing him, continued on with his actions, letting anger and insanity take the wheel of his mind, with it making no attempt at collecting itself and warning its owner about the possible consequences that could take place after this little episode was over.

Naruto had no idea what had happened and what was going on. At first he was being confronted by a calm, collected Neji, the Neji that he had 'loved', the Neji that helped him get rid of his insecurities and made him feel good and beautiful about himself. Not even two seconds later, his face was met with Neji's fist, only this time, this Neji was different. He was much more malicious, vicious, much more mad and insane than the Neji that he was used to. This Neji had completely lost all trace of reality and had lost his sanity. This Neji was much too deep into the pool of madness, and Naruto knew that if he didn't come out of it, or if he didn't get out of the way, he would get killed.

And right now, Naruto knew that the chances of him coming out alive were slowly dying down.

Feeling Neji's fist connect with his jaw, Naruto cried out in absolute pain and horror at feeling his jaw break, and along with the multiple attacked areas, like his eye and nose, Naruto was on the verge of losing his consciousness. He could see little black spots entering his vision, and he knew what it meant.

He could tell from experience after all.

Having been constantly a victim to bullying taught Naruto a lesson too many, and giving a memory too much to remember. Feeling the punches make contact with his face and various parts of his body brought back too many memories, which were often the main cause of his nightmares, back to his throbbing head. He knew he was going to go out like a light soon, but he had to stay awake. He had to. He still had issues to solve with Sasuke, who, he prayed to God, would give him a second chance.

Screaming at the top of his lungs when Neji punched his jaw again, Naruto prayed to God that Neji would stop, that he would at least be merciful enough to stop this madness, to at least have some pity on Naruto and just leave him be to suffer.

Apparently God had heard him, and Neji immediately stopped.

Neji looked over at the damage that he had done. Blood matted the bright blond locks down and the crystal-blue eyes were clenched shut, tears escaping the closed eyelids. Various purplish-blue-black marks littered the slender body, and Neji could see, as bright as day, the way Naruto's nose bent at an impossible angle, and the blood seeping through the crack of the bridge.

He wanted to punch Naruto even more, to hurt him even more, but he knew his limit. He had to draw the line at Naruto's point of consciousness and unconsciousness.

Feeling the adrenaline and excitement leave his body, to be replaced with sudden fear and panic, Neji's eyes immediately widened in shock at the sight before him. Finally registering in his head what exactly he had done, what his insanity and moment of pure madness had made him do, Neji's mouth hung agape as he could only stare helplessly at the prone and vulnerable figure at his knees.

The faint sound of Naruto's choked gasps and whimpers of pain barely registered themselves into Neji's mind, and he quickly got dressed and grabbed his cell, punching in the number for an ambulance immediately.

He wasn't a complete asshole; he knew that he had to take responsibility for his actions. But the Hyuuga name was a powerful one, and he was obviously not stupid enough to actually confess to his abuse to Naruto. He would just make up some believable lie that would convince the hospital staff enough for them to treat Naruto and not interrogate him.

_Yeah, that's what I'd do_, Neji thought to himself and immediately pressed the 'call' button, getting ready to put up the act of his lifetime.

_To Be Continued…_

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! Thank you for reading, and if you've enjoyed reading this fanfic, then be sure to review! It would really make my day! The next chapter would probably come up soon, hopefully (because of my tight schedule, haha). Anyway, thank you so much for reading! If you don't like it, then just tell me how I can improve on my writing skills down in the reviews as well! Thanks again!


	3. Pain & Past

**You Hold My Heart In Your Paws**

_Chapter 3: Pain &amp; Past_

**Disclaimer**: If I had owned Naruto, Sasuke &amp; Naruto would have made out a looooong time ago.

* * *

Fumbling through his coat pockets for his car remote, Sasuke tried his very best to keep his tears and emotions in check. His vision was being blurred by the salty water that he was doing his all to keep from spilling over his bottom eyelashes, and the sudden frozen lump in his throat barely allowed any wind to pass through. Pulling back his bottom lip such that it was secured behind a perfect row of front pearly whites. He barely noticed the fact that his fists were still shaking from suppressed anger, what with the recent events that had just taken place taking too much room in his mind.

His Naruto, no, he could no longer call him his, if he really ever was his to begin with. Naruto, the one that he thought he could settle down with for the rest of his life, had gone and, without even having any second thoughts, went on ahead and slept with the one person that Sasuke loathed with his whole entire being. He had, in one swift moment, crushed Sasuke's heart, and broke it into a countless million pieces, pieces that would probably get lost within the dust. He had showed to Sasuke exactly who his heart had belonged to in that moment, right after the both of them had climaxed.

It still hurt.

Unsteadily trotting down the cement staircase of the 4th floor, Sasuke leaned heavily onto the wall for support, knowing full well that his feet did not possess the strength to actually hold him up while his mind tried to clear itself of its foggy state, and get Sasuke grounded back on Earth.

He had hoped with all of his soul that maybe, he had finally found true love, after being alone and lonely for the first 20 years of his life. He had prayed to God that he had finally found that one person, and thought that yes, he did, on his 21st birthday, where he thought that God had answered his prayer through Naruto.

_**FLASHBACK**_

It had been a terrible day for Sasuke, as he once again had been instructed by his father to help bag a client. He was supposed to be a big shot in the business world, being all loaded and arrogant, and if Uchiha Inc. could snag him, then it would only be to their benefit, in terms of finance, obviously.

He was an important client, one that would most definitely help Uchiha Inc. grow and prosper even more than it already did, and Sasuke Uchiha had been trusted by his own father, the CEO of the company, to get him. His father, the almighty Fugaku Uchiha, had finally asked Sasuke, who had often been shunned and kept in the shadows, with his brother often outshining him, was given the one chance to prove himself of the Uchiha name. He was finally asked, not his brother, the infamous Itachi Uchiha, to help their father in further developing their company.

For the first time in his life, Sasuke was put before his brother. He was finally given the chance to prove himself to his father, to finally make himself someone that his father would be proud to call his own flesh and blood, and Sasuke knew that he was not going to risk it.

Unconsciously, Sasuke wondered whether this 'mission' to bag this extremely important and highly wanted client was his father's rather… weird way of giving him a gift. A gift that would, if Sasuke let and if he had a say in it, would grant him respect and pride in his father's eyes, after 21 years of being looked down upon and often compared to his brother, who was labeled as 'flawless', 'perfect', 'a born prodigy'.

Sasuke was ecstatic. Upon hearing the rather sudden news that he had been, _specifically_, chosen by his own father, the head of his family and the company that he had slaved for the past 1 and a half years, to help him out with this particular client, he immediately went to work. Sasuke had never bothered to initiate any form of physical contact with anyone at work, even if it was just a simple handshake (unless the situation really called for it), that was why it had come as a great surprise to everyone who was in sight of the Uchiha as he hugged his secretary, a rather short and cold fiery red-head by the name of Gaara Sabaku, and sped off towards his office, leaving behind a flustered secretary and open-mouthed coworkers.

The thing that scared the employees of the high-and-mighty Sasuke Uchiha was that he was…_smiling_.

Sasuke Uchiha _never_ smiled.

Pulling open the French doors to his spacious office, Sasuke immediately slammed his leather briefcase down onto the wooden desk by his main glass office table, and immediately set to work.

He never recalled ever feeling as happy as he did then, excluding the moments when he spent with Naruto, and relished in the thought of finally being able to prove himself to his father, that all the time an effort that Sasuke had been putting into himself and the company would be worthwhile, and that thought had Sasuke completely absorbed into figuring out the best way to convince the stuck-up prick of a client that he was supposed to deal with later on in the day.

* * *

_12.34pm._

Sasuke pulled up his suit sleeve once again as he glanced nervously up at the black doors to the entrance of the meeting room. He was supposed to meet the client at the large conference room exactly four minutes ago. Glancing up the large circular clock at the top of the double doors and checking his phone countless times to confirm that his watch was not deceiving him, Sasuke got out all the necessary documents needed for his little presentation with Mr. Client.

Reading and re-reading his notes and papers to double check and to double confirm that he had the right information, and that the text was written in a rather persuasive and convincing tone, Sasuke fiddled about nervously with his cufflinks whilst simultaneously keeping an eye on the doors.

"Why yes, thank you very much, Mr…?" Sasuke heard the muffled deep voice that no doubt belonged to a man flitter and echo about the corridors of the conference room. Furrowing his eyebrows in thought, Sasuke tried his very best to identify exactly to whom that voice belonged to. He mentally scanned through his various employees and debated whether they were about to enter and ask him some dumb question that they, as Uchiha Inc. employees, should know. But, before Sasuke could get up off of his black leather swivel chair and shout at the pathetic excuse of a coworker, Sasuke paused and thought through again.

He barely ever communicated with his subordinates, and didn't really bother about them when they were giving their presentations and reports, unless he really had to be paying attention or if some other important client was with them at that current time, so he himself couldn't be too sure whether the person outside of the door really was his employee.

Deciding to play safe and keep a low profile, Sasuke waited patiently for the voices to draw nearer, and maybe help him in identifying who exactly this person was. He knew the name of the client that he was supposed to meet, but the thing is, Sasuke himself had never met him before, and a fleeting thought of maybe he was just about to meet the man that would decide how Sasuke's father would finally view his son, Sasuke immediately straightened himself and smoothened out his appearance, getting and doing his best to look as presentable and professional as he possibly could.

"Hyuuga, Neji Hyuuga."

Sasuke immediately froze in his actions.

_What the fuck in Heaven's name was Neji fucking Hyuuga doing in Uchiha Inc.?! _

"Oh, right! Thank you Mr. Hyuuga, I may have to speak with the representative of Uchiha Inc. regarding my sudden change in decision, if you would so kindly as to wait out here for a little while. I'll just have a few short words with them and I'll be right out." Sasuke's breath caught in his throat, and his eyes widened just a teensy bit.

He waited with baited breath as the wooden doors to the conference room creaked open, and in came in the client that Sasuke was supposed to bag, that Sasuke was supposed to bag and to finally prove to his father that he was worthy of the Uchiha name, and worthy of being called his own son, his own flesh and blood.

A rather short and round man came into the room, the thin layer of hair on his head swept neatly to the side. His elongated nose was sporting a rather large mole, and his narrow moustache curtained the center of the top of his thin, slightly frowning lips. His chin was tilted so high up into the air that Sasuke actually had difficulty maintaining eye contact with him.

As soon as he entered the room, or should we say, opened the door just a crack for his upper body to fit through, Sasuke stood up with as much elegance and poise as he could muster, hoping that his towering height was enough to radiate off his authority, and enough to warn the stout man that Sasuke Uchiha was not a man to be messed around with.

"Good afternoon, Mr—," before Sasuke could even address his client, the one person who would later on, if he let, decide Sasuke's future here in Uchiha Inc., Mr. Client rudely interrupted him.

"Ah, yes, I'm so sorry Mr…" the client let his sentence dangle free in the air, hoping, with a cocked eyebrow and in all his arrogant being that Sasuke got the hint to introduce himself.

Sasuke was flabbergasted. He was the son of one of the world's greatest business typhoons, yet this man, who was supposedly a big shot and rather important person in the business industry, couldn't recognize him? He had appeared alongside his father in countless advertisements on television, on the radio, on newspapers, on billboard signs and even magazines, yet he was not recognizable to the one person that Sasuke thought would have recognized him almost immediately?

"Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha." Sasuke provided his name and watched as the face of his supposed client did not change. There was not a single flash of recognition, a slight widening of the eyes, the opening of the mouth, even by a fraction.

Nope, none.

This man before him had absolutely no idea who Sasuke was. He hadn't even recognized him. Nothing showed that he at least heard of a 'Sasuke' before in his entire life. His round face remained impassive and void of emotion as he simply stared back down at Sasuke, even though Sasuke was nearly twice his height.

Sasuke was utterly humiliated. He had never thought that the one man, whom he believed could change his entire future and that of the company, would not have heard of him before. He had tried his hardest to shine, even just a fraction of that of his father would have been good, and Sasuke thought that yes, he had shined, that yes, he was a recognized man throughout the business industry, that yes, people would immediately know who he was and what authority he held and had at the mere mention of his first name.

But his efforts still rendered futile.

Gazing back into the black, proud eyes of the short man at the door, Sasuke blankly listened to his deep voice, and the occasional squeak that would accompany it. The words that left those dragged-down lips of his client whizzed past his head, but only a few managed to register themselves into Sasuke's head.

'_Last minute change', 'going over to Hyuuga Corp.', 'presentation was fantastic', 'no time to lose'_.

Watching, dumbfounded, as the door closed and the stout man left the conference room, Sasuke could only sink back into his chair and stare blankly at the piles of various documents, that he had worked so painstakingly hard on, as he went by and replayed the day's events in his mind.

He was supposed to meet up and snag a seemingly important client that could very well help in successfully getting Uchiha Inc. to overrun their rivaling business with Hyuuga Corp., get him to finally shine in his father's eyes, to make him proud to call him his own son. This client that had left barely five minutes ago was supposed to make Sasuke's life change and turn for the better, seeing as how he could have been a much more respected man by his fellow colleagues and superiors. This client could have been , no, he _was_ the key to securing Sasuke's place as the heir of the company.

But it all went down the drain.

All because of one fucking _Neji Hyuuga._

God, how Sasuke loathed that man.

Due to him, Uchiha Inc. had lost one very precious and corporate-changing client, one that could help Uchiha Inc. take the world over by storm. Due to him, Sasuke had lost his chance at finally proving himself to his father, after 21 long years of always constantly being 'second-best'. Due to him, Sasuke would probably always remain at the same level as his own employees in his father's eyes.

It hurt to even think of being labeled as 'One of the Little Ants of Uchiha Inc.'. It was a big blow to his ego, considering the fact that it was his own father that was running the business, but he, the son, had to be working with one of and as a 'little ant'.

How Sasuke wanted to scream and lash out at that pale-eyed male, to just rip that pretentious smirk off of his face and let Neji's face make friends with his fist. He had waited all 21 years of his life, waiting for that one moment when he knew that he would be able to prove himself worthy enough of being an Uchiha, of upholding the highly respected Uchiha name, and when that moment was finally presented to him on a silver platter, fucking _Neji Hyuuga_, of all the 7 billion people in the world, had to come right in and swoop his chance away, like how an eagle were to capture its prey.

Seeing as how his first and probably last chance to prove himself to his father was taken from right underneath his nose, Sasuke clenched his eyes shut and slammed his fists down repeatedly against the large ovular conference table.

Life hated him, he was sure of it.

* * *

Slamming the door to his Porsche shut, Sasuke stormed up the stairs to his 3rd storey apartment, trying his very best to keep his anger and utter self-disappointment in control. He fumbled in his pockets for his keys, and once he successfully gotten them out from the confinement of his coat pocket, he rammed it into the doorknob and angrily shoved at the door whilst twisting the knob with as much force as he could muster.

He was so completely overtaken with rage and blinded with fury, alongside the self-disappointment eating at his insides that Sasuke could barely bring himself to care about anything else other than a long, hot shower and a good night's sleep.

Things after the sudden dismissal of the client didn't go smoothly, as Sasuke had prayed to the Gods to go by. The sudden empty feeling of disappointing, gravely and officially, his father was eating at his very soul, and Sasuke couldn't bring himself to step out of the conference room and go up to the highest floor, where the main office of his father was held at, and explain, humiliatingly, what had just taken place at the conference room.

Apparently, he didn't even have to move from where he was from, because exactly three minutes later, it was his own father, the man that he had failed yet again, who was barging through the doors, looking utterly _livid_.

"What is this _absurd_ rumor that I've just heard?! Neji Hyuuga, from that _blasted_ Hyuuga Corp., was walking on _our_ territory, walking alongside the client that I had clearly instructed and trusted _you_ enough to bag?!" The booming, rumbling voice of Fugaku echoed and rebounded off of the walls of the rather large conference room. Sasuke's head was ringing, and even though the room was rather spacious, he suddenly felt suffocated, as though the room did not allow him the ability to breathe freely.

"_SASUKE_!" The said man visibly flinched at the sound of his father's voice being directed only, specifically, at him, and he immediately stood up straight and braced himself for the barrage of questions that he knew his father would no doubt be firing at him.

"What is the meaning of this? Is it true? Where is the client? Where are the papers? You did seal the deal, didn't you?" Fugaku just rattled on and on, firing questions about what should have had happened instead of what did happen. Sasuke didn't know how to face his father after he told him the truth of exactly what had happened, much less answer him.

Uchiha Inc. and lost to Hyuuga Corp. once again.

All because of Sasuke's inability to snag _one_ client.

Fugaku abruptly stopped, and could only stare wide-eyed at his son before him, as he relayed what had happened not just ten minutes ago in the conference room to his father. During the entire explanation, Sasuke kept his unfocused gaze on the floor, where his feet were, unable to meet the gaze of his father, the one who he had disappointed, yet again.

After listening closely to the emotionless explanation of his son, Fugaku was obviously not happy, and had immediately stormed out of the room and back up to his main office, angrily flipping of anybody who dared to even approach him in his fury-enhanced state.

Knowing that he had let his father down for the nth time in his entire life, Sasuke had allowed himself to wallow in self-pity and let his hatred towards a certain Hyuuga manifest and swallow him whole as he scourged through the rest of the day's work. He never bothered to initiate or sustain a single conversation throughout the rest of the day, even when his secretary, the only person Sasuke even considered close enough to be a friend, talked to him.

Sasuke had completely shut himself out, and Gaara knew that it would be a while for him to open back up again.

* * *

Angrily slamming his fist against the aged wood of the door repeatedly, Sasuke finally let his tears fall.

He had failed yet again.

He had failed as a son, as an employee, and as a future leader of the company that he sacrificed so much of his well-being for. But the one thought and utterly sudden realization that hurt him the most was that he had failed, and disappointed his _father_…_again_.

Resting his forehead against the cold wood, Sasuke clenched his eyes painfully shut, while gripping onto the silver-painted doorknob, so hard that his knuckles turned white from the amount of effort he was putting into holding onto it. Sasuke allowed his body to completely let go of reality, for just a few minutes, in order to release the day's pent-up frustrations; at the client, at his father, at Neji, and especially at _himself_.

All he ever wanted to do was to prove to his father, for once in his entire life, that he was good enough, but no. Life hated him so much that it couldn't even give him that.

If it had been anyone else other than Neji, Sasuke might have been at least a little less depressed. But upon realizing the fact that it was Neji whom he had lost to, the one person with whom he was constantly on par with, the one person who always demanded the most, and possibly all of Sasuke, every single damn time, Sasuke's self-hatred and self-disappointment just grew in on itself and he completely broke down.

Sasuke's mind barely registered the fact that the door to his own apartment was being creaked open from the inside. At that moment, being murdered by a burglar that broke into his house would have been perfect, considering the fact that Sasuke wanted nothing more than to be wiped off of the Earth at that very instant, seeing as how he couldn't possibly imagine living and ever getting over this humiliation, this embarrassment.

Feeling much more than seeing, Sasuke barely got it through his head that he was now leaning on someone, someone much shorter and smaller than him, and he had a fleeting thought in his brain that this person would collapse from the weight and build of Sasuke, whom he/she was supporting. Feeling the day's exhaustion finally catch up with him, Sasuke let his eyes slide closed, and leaned his whole entire weight onto his only current support, the only person that was holding him up right then, even though he didn't know who it was.

At least he had someone.

* * *

Groaning slightly at how stuffed his head was feeling, Sasuke rolled onto his side and buried his face under the pillow, wanting for the incoming headache to just dissipate and never torture him.

_Wait, pillow?_ Sasuke immediately shot up, not recalling any memory of him actually making his way onto his bed, much less sleeping in it, dressed in only his boxers. He blinked a couple of times, trying his best to get rid of the sleep-haze that his mind and eyes were still in, and thought back to the day's events and activities.

As soon as Sasuke's brain caught up with what was actually happening and what had happened, his hands immediately shot up from where they were once laying at (by his sides), and covered his face, the previous feelings of utter humiliation getting the best of him. He vaguely remembered depending on someone to hold him up when he had reached his front door, but Sasuke couldn't bring himself to care.

Constantly replaying the day's events again and again in his head, Sasuke couldn't help but scream. To scream out every ounce of pain that he felt at letting his father down, at being beaten by Neji Hyuuga in terms of bagging one pathetic client, in terms of losing his chance at becoming an at least 'acceptable' son by his own father.

Grabbing the nearest pillow and throwing it at a random direction in the room, Sasuke once again broke down, only this time there were no tears. They were all being held back, because Sasuke knew that he could not afford to lose his male pride. It was the only thing that he had left that was keeping him grounded. Without his usual cocky pride, Sasuke wouldn't have anything else left in him, and Sasuke never wanted to experience that.

He let his head hang low, arms and shoulders completely slumped and limp at his sides, as he willed with all his might for his tears to not fall and just go back to where they came from, and blocked out all the sounds around him.

Naruto could only stare blankly at the lone toned figure on the bed. He had no idea whatsoever as to what could have made Sasuke so upset, and what he could do to go around it. He didn't want his plans for the night to be ruined; he had planned everything perfectly after all.

It was his boyfriend's 21st birthday, the day he officially became an adult, and Naruto had gone out of his way to make it the best birthday that his perfect boyfriend could ever have in his whole entire life, including his future. He had bought for Sasuke a gift, one that he knew his boyfriend would like, but at that very point of time Naruto was at a loss of what to do. How could he go about and get rid of the moody and upsetting aura around his boyfriend, in order for him to at least be happy with Naruto, even if it was just a short while?

Watching his boyfriend collapse in on himself was heartbreaking in Naruto's eyes, and he knew for a fact that he couldn't stand to watch him behave this way any longer. It was his birthday, and Naruto was going to make sure, by hook or by crook, that Sasuke damn well enjoyed it.

Nodding determinedly to himself, Naruto plucked up his courage and silently approached his boyfriend of one year. With each step that Naruto took towards Sasuke, his resolve hardened and grew even more than before. He was going to fix this mess, even if he had to go days without sleep or anything that was considered a necessity for a human. He was going to fix it, and he was going to do everything that was in his power to see the smile that he loved, appear on his boyfriend's face once again.

As soon as Naruto reached the foot of the bed, he cautiously and slowly reached out a feminine hand, and lightly held and laced his small fingers with that of the long, limp ones of his boyfriend.

The skin-on-skin contact broke Sasuke out of the daze he was in, and snapped his blank stare up towards the one person who dared to make physical contact with him. But upon laying his eyes on that of his blond lover, Sasuke visibly relaxed, and his eyes softened at the realization that it was Naruto who was in his house, it was Naruto who had supported him, quite literally, earlier that day, and it was Naruto who was doing his best to try to cheer Sasuke up, even if it's just by a little.

Taking in a deep breath and tilting his head backwards toward to orange glow of the setting sun, Sasuke pushed back his tears and smiled. "I should have known it was you." Slowly opening his eyes, Sasuke locked gazes with the blue-eyed one that he loved the most, and he clenched his fingers even tighter around the smaller ones in his palm, practically swallowing the tanned hand.

The returning serene smile that Naruto gave back to him was enough to make Sasuke's heart flutter about and around his chest, making him almost gasp at exactly how beautiful and ethereal his boyfriend looked at that current moment; the setting sun's orangey-pink glow reflecting off of his golden strands settled in a messy mop at the top of his head, the way his eyes seemed to be indigo instead of blue, shaded by the sun's fading rays.

He looked like an angel.

Wanting nothing more than to kiss those lips of his boyfriend's, Sasuke dove towards Naruto's inviting lips and wrapped his arms around him, keeping him in an extremely tight embrace, not wanting to let go. Closing his eyes, Sasuke relished in the feel of his lips against Naruto's own soft ones, making sure that he kept it light, and didn't go on any deeper, knowing that his boyfriend wasn't quite ready yet.

Wrapping his own slim arms around Sasuke's neck, Naruto continued to press and move his lips against Sasuke's, playfully nipping at his lower lips and giving the occasional suck. Naruto knew full well what he was initiating, and he knew damn well that it was about time they took their relationship one step further. He knew that Sasuke was tired of waiting, and he also knew that, deep down in his heart, Sasuke was the one. The one that he was going to be spending the rest of his life with, and he was therefore willing to give his body, his virginity to Sasuke, knowing full well how much it would mean to him, and how much it would mean to their relationship.

He trusted Sasuke, and it was about damn time that he made it official.

Reluctantly pulling away from the playful meeting of lips, Naruto whimpered at the loss of warmth, but little sacrifices like these had to be made in order to make room for something much greater and pleasuring. Naruto laid his forehead against his boyfriend's and showed exactly how much he wanted him, wanted Sasuke Uchiha, right then and there.

Opening his eyes in confusion at the sudden loss of the feel of Naruto's lips against his, Sasuke looked at his boyfriend, showing his confusion through his eyes, and involuntarily gasped. There, bright as day, clearly written and screaming out from the blue oceanic depths, was the unadulterated lust and pure want and sexual need that Naruto was harboring for the Uchiha. The blue orbs were dilated, showing only a sliver of cerulean, and Sasuke nearly moaned at the most extreme and sexiest come-hither look he had ever seen in his entire life.

And it was directed at _him_, by his boyfriend, the one that he had not only loved, but lusted after for quite some time.

"Are you sure you want this?" Sasuke gasped out, the sudden rise in temperature of the room disabling him from voicing his thoughts at a louder and/or higher pitch. He felt that if he did, he was going to be breaking this special and crucial relationship-changing moment, and he did not want that to happen.

But that reason was only secondary to what Sasuke really felt. They were both virgins, and although Sasuke was a little knowledgeable in the area and 'art' of homo-sex, it was pretty damn obvious to him that Naruto wasn't. Naruto was the epitome of a naïve virgin, and he, no matter how ridiculous it sounded, did not want to take advantage of him and ruin that status of his. Naruto was obviously going to bottom, and first times were never usually memorable. It often hurt, and Sasuke did not want Naruto to be hurt in any form or way possible. He would hunt down and kill the person that dared to even think about inflicting any damage, be it physically or emotionally, onto his precious person.

Naruto, clearly knowing what Sasuke was worried and getting all panicky over, simply smiled, that breath-taking, serene smile, and, pushing himself up using his hips, brought his lips towards Sasuke's again. Whispering a quiet 'Yes' that was only meant for the both of them to hear, Naruto immediately closed the gap between them, and sealed their little deal for the night.

* * *

Waking up the next morning, Sasuke had felt a thousand times better than he ever had before. Taking note of their state of (un)dress, the messy and stained sheets, as well as the blond angel laying over his chest, with his head tucked securely under his chin, Sasuke's heart immediately burst in joy.

He had finally managed to secure his relationship between himself and Naruto, and he could not have been happier. Knowing full well that even if he was having the worst days imaginable, his little blond ray of sunshine that was now using him as a pillow, would always be there for him, regardless of whatever that happens.

Naruto loved him, and had told him that countless times just the previous night.

And as soon as that thought crossed his mind, Sasuke fell even more in love with Naruto, if that was even possible.

* * *

"Happy belated birthday, Sasuke," Naruto chirped as he presented to Sasuke the little gift that he had bought for his boyfriend. It was a small cardboard box that was messily wrapped in loud, bright orange wrapping paper, and Sasuke immediately knew that Naruto himself had wrapped it, considering the thick layers of sticky tape haphazardly placed everywhere, and the little spots of brown cardboard that still could be seen dotting the gift.

But Sasuke made no mind not attention to that, as he carefully peeled open the sorry excuse for wrapping paper, and opened up the mini cardboard box, and his eyes immediately widened at the sight before him. At the bottom of the cardboard box, there was a pendant of some sort.

Slowly reaching his hand deep into the confines of the box, Sasuke watched bemused as his boyfriend visibly fidgeted, anxiously wanting to know what Sasuke had thought of his gift. Deciding to save him from dying of anxiety, Sasuke pulled the items out of the box and took his time to examine them carefully.

The pendant was that of a silver half heart, with a blue crystal, much similar to the shade of Naruto's eyes when he was facing the sun, was in its center. There was a tiny hook at the top right of it that enabled for a thin silver chain to be put through, so that it could either be worn as a necklace or a keychain.

However, what he didn't get was why it was only half a heart.

Glancing up at his boyfriend expectantly, Sasuke raised a questioning brow and motioned towards the pendant, silently asking his question that he didn't bother saying out loud, only to realize that Naruto himself was fumbling for something in his pockets.

After countless fruitless attempts at patting his pockets and digging through his jacket, Naruto found exactly what he was looking for and fished it out of its recesses, and Sasuke's eyes widened at the sheer beauty and significance of what the both of them held in their hands.

In Naruto's tiny palm was a half-heart, similar to that of Sasuke, being the exact same size just that I was laterally inverted. It was gold in color, and in the center of it laid a midnight black pendant that turned a distinct and rather unique shade of grey when exposed to sunlight.

Lightly grasping hold of the hand that held his pendant's other half; he gently pried open Sasuke's fingers and took the silver half heart out of his lax hold. Moving from sitting across from Sasuke to settling on his lap, Naruto sat with his back towards Sasuke's chest and instructed for Sasuke to hold the back of his hands, whilst Naruto's own hands guided theirs into forming a heart shape using the two pendants.

As soon as the insides of both pendants made contact with one another, they seemed to have been locked firmly into place, and both Sasuke and Naruto could only watch transfixed and in awe at the pure magnificence that was in right in front of them, as they watched the swirling colors of both gold and silver mix and form beautiful ripples all around the little heart. The movement of the colored ink, as Sasuke believed them to be, caused a sudden reaction in the two stones that were put into the separate centers of the pendants, and they both started to glow a very bright white, but it wasn't blinding enough such that it hurt to look at.

It really was beautiful.

Breaking his gaze from that of the seemingly unreal beauty before his very eyes, Sasuke turned his head to face that of his boyfriend's, who's eyes seemed glazed over as soon as they landed on the enthralling jewel that he held, clasped in his nimble fingers.

Leaning forward such that their foreheads came into contact with each other, Sasuke covered Naruto's hands with his own, silently voicing out a question. He knew that there was a much deeper meaning to the gift than Naruto was letting on, and he also knew that whatever this gift meant, it would greatly affect and be a part of their relationship, in the future.

And Sasuke was itching to find out just what it was.

Taking notice of the way Sasuke's eyes seemed to be begging for Naruto to explain the significance of this gift, Naruto lightly smiled and pulled the pendant out of their grip. As soon as it was back in the open, Naruto gently pried the two halves of the heart open, and the halves immediately went back to their original coloring, gold and onyx, silver and blue.

Sasuke could only watch fascinated at the sheer wonder of it all, and he silently took back his half of the heart, the silver heart with the blue gem.

"The one that you're holding in your hand right now is meant to represent you, silver, and me, blue. I chose silver because it symbolizes wealth, and you are practically loaded with cash right now and probably for the rest of your life. Not only that, but it also symbolizes the moon, a beauty in itself. The moon rarely gets to shine, some days hiding by itself in the dark violet of the night skies, and only on rare occasions does it come out, and that's when everybody takes notice of exactly how beautiful it really is, of exactly how wonderful it really is, and on these occasions is when people really appreciate the moon, and show and realize their genuine love for it,"

"Kind of like you, Sasuke. Your life and the way you have lived it could have been reflected in a single cycle of the moon. In the first part, the moon itself will hide, not revealing itself to anyone, just like you. You have constantly been outshined by your own brother, and have more often than not hiding yourself and brooding in one corner of the room or another. Then, when we finally started to get to know each other, you slowly began to open up, more each time we met up, like the moon when it goes from its first quarter to its third quarter. It was during this time when the people around you slowly got used to you, and slowly started appreciating you for what and who you are, and it was during this time that I had fallen in love with you."

Gazing back down at their joined hands, Naruto let a small, peaceful grin take over his lips as he reminisced about the time that he had started to fall in love with his boyfriend.

**_FLASHBACK_**

It was during high school, when Sasuke had yet again had to come in and rescue Naruto from being beaten into a complete and bloody pulp by the bullies that just loved to make his life a living hell. Usually, Sasuke would have only broke them apart, easily, if I may add, considering his height advantage, but that day, he had been completely different. Sasuke had been unusually and uncharacteristically _livid_, if the feral and almost insane look on his face was anything to go by. When Naruto himself had looked at his eyes, there was no trace of any sanity, just pure, outright madness, and in Sasuke's fury-enhanced state, he had managed to not only teaching the bullies a lesson that they would learn and keep in the recesses of their mind for the rest of their pathetic lives, but had successfully managed to land 3 out of the 5 of them in the hospital.

Those in the hospitals were put in the ICU, and those that managed to come out looking not-quite-as-dead as the rest, were definitely emotionally scarred, and they visibly flinched whenever they took notice of the Uchiha from that they on, often peeing in their pants while doing so.

Sasuke had been satisfied with the result, even though he almost had to be put in Juvenile Detention. But, similar to the Hyuuga name, the Uchiha name was much too powerful, and Sasuke easily evaded the severe consequences that anyone else but an Uchiha and Hyuuga would have faced for their actions.

Naruto, however, had been extremely upset and angry, at both Sasuke and himself, for countless days straight. Sure, he was glad that those assholes didn't pick on him any longer, he was free to move about the school without having to worry about sporting a broken rib or two on the way back home. However, he was depressed over the fact that because of him, because of inability to protect himself from those sad excuses of human beings, Naruto had almost ruined Sasuke's future. He had almost put him in the bad light, successfully ruining the Uchiha image that Sasuke's family worked and sweated their asses off to bring it to where it was now.

He was also mad at Sasuke for protecting him, was mad at Sasuke for having to swoop right in and risk his whole entire future and the rest of his life for someone as insignificant as Naruto.

It was Naruto's own fault that he almost destroyed Sasuke, and how he loathed himself then for that. However, when the self-hatred and anger towards both himself and Sasuke began to slowly die down, thoughts of as to why Sasuke did what he did began festering themselves into Naruto's mind. He was itching and dying to know why, so that he could practically scream in Sasuke's face for doing what he had done, something that he clearly should not have and should never even bother doing.

When Sasuke was confronted with a barrage of questions by a heavily-sobbing Naruto, who was inflicting more self-damage through his questions than to Sasuke, Sasuke just stood there impassively, waiting for Naruto to let off all his steam before he began to calmly and slowly let out the truth of his actions (although not the entire truth, just part of it).

"Before I get into the details of my course of action, I want you to promise me that you will never say those things about yourself again, is that clear, Uzumaki?" Sasuke growled out his demand as his mind replayed the rather painful way Naruto described himself out to be. Insignificant, pathetic, worthless, waste of space, weak, useless, were the few of many various adjectives that Naruto had described himself out to be.

Sasuke hated it.

Naruto could only stare back in shock and nod his head dumbly before Sasuke continued on. And as soon as Sasuke had uttered those few words, those few words that meant so much to Naruto, the insignificant and pathetic Naruto, and Naruto knew that he had officially, clearly, obviously, fallen in love with his best friend.

"You're amazing, spectacular, stunning, enchanting, and outright magnificent. You're rare to find in this sorry excuse of a world, and it's about time people and you yourself finally realized. You're beautiful, Naruto, and something beautiful, no matter what it is, should never ever get broken. I never want that happening to you."

* * *

Slowly sinking back in to reality, Naruto gazed back deeply into Sasuke's eyes, finding himself getting lost in the deep, endless pools of midnight black that he loved. A faint smile painted Sasuke's face, and that slight uplifting of the corners of his lips had Naruto falling deeper in love with the man before him. The slight tilt of the pale lips completely changed Sasuke's face, and he positively glowed. The image of that handsome face of his pierced through the hazy recesses of Naruto's mind, snapping him back into reality and hinting for him to get on with his story.

Heaving out a contented sigh in just being in his Sasuke's embrace, Naruto closed his eyes and continued. "And when you finally reach the last stage, when you finally shine and just glow, bathing everyone in the pale moonlight that would seem ghostly if done by others, but completely natural and unrealistically beautiful when done by you, that's when people realize exactly who you are, and what you are made of. The days when I truly get to see the real, complete you are very rare and far in between, Sasuke, but that is just what that makes it all the more special and often looked-forward to, and I love you for that,"

"The times when the world truly gets to see you last for only short whiles, and only on very special occasions, like special events, dates that mean a lot to us, be it in a positive or negative way. I wished that I could actually get to see more of you, though, more of this real Sasuke. But it's okay, I love you for what and who you are, I don't want you changing."

"The blue gem is to represent me, as they're the color of my eyes. So that wherever you go, you'll always have something of me to remind you of me, and that we'll never forget about us, no matter how far apart we are from each other, no matter how long it'll take for us to meet again."

Leaning forward to seek out the lips of his beloved, Sasuke made sure to only keep it light and chaste, while at the same time pouring all of his swimming and bursting emotions into that one kiss, hoping that he got his message across, showing Naruto exactly how thankful and grateful he was for the extremely meaningful gift.

Reluctantly pulling away simultaneously, Naruto pulled out his own half of the heart, and unconsciously smiled as he ran his thumb over the black gem that was situated in the center of it.

"Black is when all the colors are mixed together, where there is a little bit of everything if one were to look closely enough. Like you, Sasuke. You're a little bit of everything, although you more reserved side often takes the wheel, you have shown me everything I could have possibly wanted in the love of my life, and that's why you're perfect to me, that's why the color black is the perfect color to me. It also symbolizes the unknown and is mysterious, kind of like you as well. You're so impassive and emotional in the past that you could have been the epitome of 'Mystery', and you still are to me, but that's what I love about you. Black also means and represents elegance and power. The elegance that you take everywhere with you, be it in public or even when it's just the two of us. Never once have I seen you stumble down so ungracefully. You always seem to be able to be in complete control over every little thing in your little world, Sasuke, and it's an honorable trait to have. The power being an Uchiha has given you an authority that many people crumble under, and the power of your love that you hold over me, and I love you even more for that."

Naruto traced his index finger along the contours of the gold, and smiled a small smile. He only bought the gold one because he felt that it matched the silver one of his boyfriend, but Sasuke knew better. It was by pure coincidence that Naruto had bought for himself the color that he obviously represented, and Sasuke was about to tell him just that.

"The color gold fits you perfectly." At the confused gaze that met with his as soon as those words left his lips, Sasuke chuckled and wrapped his arms tighter around his boyfriend. "It symbolizes both wealth and endurance, just that this wealth is a little different from the one that silver represents. This wealth refers to your wealth in terms of joy, happiness, and love. You are always constantly happy, looking only on the bright side of things and constantly switching and changing the negatives such that they work into your favor. You are constantly spreading this joy and love that you possess too much of, and your happiness is extremely contagious. Anyone within a five-meter radius of you would immediately feel better, even if it's just by a little, at having just one look at you, and that radiant smile of yours. You're the epitome of happiness, Naruto; you're the reason for _my_ happiness."

Wrapping his arms around his boyfriend even more tightly, Sasuke hooked his chin over Naruto's left shoulder and planted a light kiss at the hollow juncture between Naruto's neck and shoulder, where he knew Naruto was once injured at, because of one devastating kick that one of the assholes (bullies) had landed on Naruto, and Sasuke clenched his eyes shut at the memory as it flittered by his head. "You have endured so much pain, so much torture, so much self-loathing and self-disappointment, all of which you did not deserve, that you've morphed into a beauty right before my eyes, and you don't know how much I love and respect you for that."

Leaning his own blond head against that of his lover, Naruto had completely no idea that Sasuke could relate him so much to a color that he had picked on a whim.

"Gold also symbolizes the energy of the sun, as well as confidence and courage. You're basically the sun, personified, and you're always radiating off your own ray of sunlight, your own beam of light. You are the light to my world Naruto, please don't ever forget that." Tilting Naruto's head around, Sasuke kissed the little button nose that just demanded to be paid attention to. Smiling to himself at hearing the giggle that erupted from Naruto's throat, Sasuke continued on ahead. "You are always so confident about yourself, always knowing your weak and strong points, and constantly improving yourself to minimize the weak ones. You are courageous enough to stand up for yourself and people weaker than you, always constantly offering a helping hand, even if it meant several sacrifices on your part. You are daring enough to try out new things, to explore new territories and tread on dangerous waters, for the sake of someone else. You're courageous enough to even venture into the depths and dangerous territory of the much less sane people that you have come across in your life, and I respect you so much for that. No one else's courage could rival that of yours, Naruto, and believe me when I say that you've got more balls than I do sometimes." Whipping his head around so fast to stare into his lover's bemused expression, Naruto could only widen his eyes in shock as Sasuke blurted out one of his secrets.

"A-are you serious, Sasuke?" Naruto whispered out, and at the slight nod that he received, Naruto turned back his body and immediately fell back into his boyfriend's chest.

"And, quoting your words, 'I love you for what and who you are, I don't want you changing'." Sasuke whispered out and let the calm serene quietness take over them once again. Naruto tried his best to wrap around the sudden thought and knowledge of knowing that his boyfriend was actually envious of him in one way, and it seemed almost unreal to Naruto.

Having to hear those words from his boyfriend, and how he described him to be, Naruto's love for the Uchiha only continued to grow, and when the love that he held at that moment for the Uchiha was threatening to burst and collapse in on itself, Naruto knew then and there that Sasuke was the one.

Closing his eyes and planting a light kiss at the corner of his bastard's lips, Naruto once again put the two pendant halves together, watching in amazement once again as the silver and gold mixed together beautifully, while the gems both started to glow an identical shade of pure white.

"And when we're together, that's when we're both unstoppable." At hearing the voice of Sasuke echo about the silent room, Naruto glanced up, only to look back down at their joined hands, where Sasuke's pale fingers were gently stroking the soft skin of his knuckles.

"We balance each other out, kind of like the sun and the moon, like gold and silver. We're both wonderful on our own already, but when the both of us come together, that's when we're truly magnificent, that's when we're truly beautiful, because we've finally got each other," Naruto whispered and glanced back up at his boyfriend.

Smiling and reaching into his jeans pocket once more, Naruto pulled out two identical looking chains of silver and gold each. Hooking the silver pendant through the gold chain, Naruto instructed for Sasuke to lean in closer, and successfully clipping and securing the now-necklace around the long, pale neck of his boyfriend. Naruto giggled at the bright red hickeys that he saw were dotting the pale column of Sasuke's neck, relishing in the memories that they provided, but managed to keep them down to a minimum so as to not ruin the special moment between the two of them.

Sasuke slowly pried open Naruto's fingers and took the golden pendant from his small palm, and attached it to the silver chain that was hanging limply from Naruto's wrist, and did the same thing to him as what Naruto had done.

Looking down at the identical half-heart pendants hanging around their necks, and the symbolic meaning that they hold behind them, Sasuke and Naruto glanced up at each other and locked gazes, smoldering onyx clashing with swirling blue.

A simultaneous "I love you," left the lips of both occupants of the room, and the both of them had never felt more loved than they did at that very moment, and the both of them knew for a fact that they had found their 'One', and the previous day's upsetting events were all pushed to the back of Sasuke's mind.

Right then and there, the only thing that mattered to him was Naruto.

His Naruto.

* * *

Knocking himself out of his painful trip down memory lane, Sasuke Uchiha clambered down the remaining flights of stairs hastily, doing his best to loosen his tie and unbutton his top collar button, just so that he could reach into his shirt and pull the damned, suddenly too heavy pendant off of his neck. But after repeated failed attempts, Sasuke simply didn't bother and decided that he'd get rid of it as soon as he was more emotionally stable, and able to think a little bit more clearly.

Sasuke's hazed mind was still swimming about in its own mess, and Sasuke had a fleeting thought at the back of his mind that maybe he should wait until he was calmer before he headed down the road in his car. But, as soon as he remembered where he was, and exactly what had happened not too long ago, Sasuke clutched at his chest, where his heart was clenching so painfully that Sasuke doubted whether or not he would ever be able to have a regularly functioning heart ever again.

His vision was constantly being blurred by the tears that kept streaming down his face, refusing to let up and at least give him some of his vision so that he could get out of that damned place, but no, his tears refused to stop flowing, his sobs refused to be quieted down, and the pathetic and stubborn lump in his throat prevented him from breathing regularly.

Stumbling through the entrance towards the apartment building, Sasuke half-ran, half-walked and made his way towards his car, fumbling in his pockets for the car remote, so that he could save himself the pain and trouble from having to stay in this hell hole any longer.

As soon as he felt the familiar material wrap around his fingers, Sasuke yanked it out of his pocket and immediately unlocked his car, yanking the door open and, for once in his life, threw all thoughts of maintaining a good image out of his mind and ungracefully got the driver's seat, making sure to slam the door extra hard, just like he did back at Nar— that slut's apartment.

_I can't even say his name._

Turning on the ignition and gripping the steering wheel so tight that his knuckles were turning white with the sheer effort; Sasuke stepped on the pedal and immediately zoomed out of the car park. He had no idea where he was supposed to go. If things had gone according to plan, Sasuke would have been in the car with him—

A pained, choked sob escaped the refines of Sasuke's throat.

If he hadn't had come earlier, if he had actually arrived at the supposed meeting time, he would still have been in a relationship with Naruto. He still would have been with Naruto, holding him, touching him, kissing him.

And remain completely oblivious to the fact that he was being cheated on.

For the past 6 months.

Swerving so far to right that he almost crashed into a passing vehicle in the next lane, Sasuke clenched his eyes shut, only to open them once again at the deafening sound of a car horn blaring. Removing one hand up in a mock salute, Sasuke tried his best to convey his apologies whilst focusing on the road, and to stop getting his mind to think back to when Naruto had cheated on him.

He had fucking lost his Naruto, the light of his life, to the blasted Neji Hyuuga. He had lost his Naruto to fucking Neji Hyuuga, of all people, 6 months prior to the current date, to their 2-year anniversary.

What had he done to deserve this treatment from his boyfriend, the one that he loved and treasured and showed that he absolutely cared and loved him with all of his heart?

He had given his all into the relationship, putting in every ounce of his soul and entire being into it, only to be shoved aside without a second thought as soon as Neji Hyuuga was in the picture.

Was he still inferior to Neji?

Had he even outshined Neji, if ever?

What had he done to Naruto that would cause him to backstab him, in the worst way imaginable? What had he done to Naruto that would cause him to betray the trust that he had for Naruto, knowing for a fact that Sasuke did not trust easily? What had he done to Naruto, in all their years of friendship, for him to just casually throw him aside for Neji?

Had he not been a good enough boyfriend to Naruto?

Had he not showed him enough love and care and concern for Naruto?

Did he even mean anything to Naruto?

At the thought of actually not meaning anything to his most important and precious person, Sasuke felt like as though the wind just got sucked right out of his lungs, and his heart momentarily stopped beating.

To not mean anything to the love of his life. To not mean anything to the one person whom he would gladly throw his life away for, in order to see him smile. To not mean anything to the one person whom Sasuke sacrificed so much of his time and put in so much effort into maintaining a relationship with.

To not have meant anything to Naruto Uzumaki, his significant other.

Sasuke's whole world stopped, and the blaring sounds of multiple beeps and horns flew right past his head. His mind barely registered the fact that the car he was in was currently sailing through the air, the crunch of gravel lo longer making their way through to his ears. All Sasuke could do was stare blankly up at the evergreen forest that laid spread out, as far as the eye could see, as his car soared through the air, in all its magnificent airborne glory.

When sounds were officially starting to register themselves through Sasuke's mind and not flying past his head, he barely registered the faint screams, horns, and hollers for and ambulance from above.

The last thought that flew by Sasuke's mind before he exploded into a world of pain and unconsciousness was that _he should have tried even harder to be a better boyfriend to Naruto_.

_To Be Continued…_

* * *

**Author's Note**: HOLY CRAP I FINALLY GOT THIS CHAPTER DONE OMG. I immediately worked on it since I uploaded the second chapter. Gosh, it seriously took me a lot of time and energy to write.

There are a few things that I guess I have to clarify:

The flashback to exactly a year ago was what the both of them felt then, Naruto's insecurities will be kicking in a little bit later, so stay tuned!

*Phew* Anyway, please drop a review down in the review section below, and tell me whether you've enjoyed it or not! Yes, it's gonna be a multi-chapter fic and I really hope that you guys enjoy reading this! The next chapter will most probably come out the some time the next weeks, considering the fact it's Sunday here in Singapore and I have MULTIPLE tests to study for for school. *Groans* Anyway, thanks once again, and stay tuned! :D

PLEASE REVIEW! I'd like at least the number to reach 18 before YHMHIYP: Chpt. 4 comes out! It'll really do much for me in terms of writing the next few chapters! #Motivation


	4. Calms & Cherished Moments

**You Hold My Heart In Your Paws**

_Chapter 4: Calms &amp; Cherished Moments_

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto, and it's pissing me off.

* * *

_**FLASHBACK**_

The days after their first time together, after the night when they both lost their virginities to each other, had been magical. Their love had grown ever so stronger, and they knew by heart that nothing could ever break and pull them apart.

Getting ready to head back down to Uchiha Inc., Sasuke knew that many more nights of which he had to sacrifice his sleep for would be coming. After all, they had just lost one economy-changing client, to Hyuuga Corp. no less, and their rival's business was booming at an incredibly fast pace. Fugaku Uchiha, the head of Uchiha Inc., was obviously not pleased with the revelation, and had instructed for every single one of his employees to clock in extra hours just so that they could still be on the same page as Hyuuga Corp., and not lag behind in the business world.

They had their pride to uphold, damn it.

Sighing as he failed to tie his tie again (thoughts of castrating a certain Neji Hyuuga having taken up most of the space in his mind), Sasuke turned to face his sleeping angel, hoping that perhaps looking at him would be able to calm his nerves down a little such that he would be able to focus more on getting ready and looking presentable for work.

Strands of gold lay flayed about on the big, fluffy pillow, and tiny, feminine hands lay underneath a rounded whiskered cheek, cradling the angelic face as Naruto Uzumaki slept, with all of peace in the world. His ever-so plump lips parted slightly, allowing the first signs of drool to make friends with the pillow beneath his head, and the little nose perched on the middle of his face was scrunched up slightly, and Sasuke could hear the faintest of snores reverberating throughout the grand master bedroom of Sasuke's penthouse. The blue orbs that Sasuke's love for grew with each passing day, were hidden behind a pair of closed, tanned eyelids.

Simply watching his angel, his savior, sleep with a certain calm that only one could reach when in their own depths of dreams, Sasuke could not help the fluttering that he felt in his chest, and the way his lips quirked up into a small smile. Wanting nothing more than to bask in the presence of his loved one, Sasuke stealthily made his way over to the right side of the bed (which was empty), and, not paying any mind to his work clothes, which would probably end up a little bit rumpled once he got back out of bed, Sasuke laid on his side and rested one arms over and around Naruto's waist whilst tucking the blond head under his chin. Simply breathing in the vanilla-scented hair and stroking the warm skin beneath his padded fingers, Sasuke threw all thoughts of work out of his mind and simply relished in the feeling of being close to Naruto.

Suddenly feeling enveloped by an all too familiar scent and warmth, Naruto turned around in his Sasuke's arms and slowly opened his eyes, allowing his blue irises to get used to the sudden change in brightness. Blinking a few times to get rid of the sleep-induced haze and focus on his surroundings, Naruto let his gaze rest on his hands, which were directly in front of his face, that were resting on a suit-clad chest. Pulling away from the tight and somewhat possessive embrace, Naruto peeked up under long, thick yellow bangs, to the face of his beloved, who was staring straight ahead, seemingly content with how he was right then.

Confused, knowing that Sasuke had to go to work and earn money so that they could continue having a roof over their heads; Naruto uncurled his fist and gently poked Sasuke in the chest, hoping to get his attention. Sneaking a glance over his boyfriend's broad shoulders, Naruto realized that it was close to 7.30A.M., and if Sasuke did not leave soon, he would have to rush to work, and risk being late because of the morning rush hour.

Feeling a tiny little bump repeatedly bumping against his chest, Sasuke glanced down to the blond mop of hair that wafted off of that sweet vanilla that Sasuke knew was Naruto's signature scent, and quirked an eyebrow up at the confused blue orbs.

"Don't you have work, teme?" The pink lips that Sasuke loved to kiss were pulled into a precious little pout, and Sasuke did not want anything more than to kiss it off of his kit's face. Swooping down until he could press their lips together gently, Sasuke pulled back and admired how beautiful his morning-Naruto looked like.

Due to their romp the previous night, the both of them had slept in their birthday suits, after having cleaned up and changing the soiled sheets, of course. The white duvet slipped off of Naruto's shoulder, exposing the hickey-covered shoulder and thoroughly ravished neck. Sasuke smirked, knowing that those love bites would only fade off after a few days, at most, and until then, anyone who laid their eyes on _his_ Naruto would obviously know that he was taken, and would probably be for the rest of his life.

Suddenly taking notice of where his boyfriend's gaze was trailing off to, Naruto immediately pulled the covers up and hid his body, such that only his head was exposed. He could feel his face flaming, and no doubt he looked like a ripened tomato right then.

_Curse that teme for leaving so many bites! How am I supposed to leave the house?!_

Inwardly fuming, Naruto glared hard at his boyfriend whilst at the same time cursing him for all he was worth, and for all the embarrassment that he would cause Naruto later on in the day when he left back for his apartment.

The weak attempt at a glare had only brought amusement to Sasuke, and he could not help but let out a rather quiet chuckle at seeing the dobe trying his best to instill some sort of fear in the Uchiha, through hardened sapphire orbs that were surrounded by a burning red face. He looked extra adorable, not fierce, which was what Naruto was trying to pull off.

"I just wanted to spend a little more time with you, is that too much to ask for, babe?" Sasuke purred, quite seductively, if Naruto might add. Widening his eyes a little more than necessary at the subtle hint that the Uchiha had just given out, Naruto immediately scampered away, cursing at the pain that shot up his back from his use-to-be-virgin bottom. Pulling up the covers around himself, Naruto could only watch, embarrassedly, as Sasuke gracefully got on all fours and started crawling his way to Naruto, like how a panther would do to its next meal.

Holding back a moan at the lustful stare that was being directed at his way, Naruto gulped and watched, transfixed, as Sasuke continue making his way, the mattress protesting against the heavy muscle weight that Sasuke carried around in his monstrous build.

As soon as Sasuke's lips were only a hair's breadth away from Naruto's, and his midnight liquid pools boring into those of Naruto's lustfully-frightened cerulean, Sasuke smirked, that oh so slight quirk of the lips that had most women dropping their panties at the sight of it, and reached behind Naruto's head…

…To grab his cufflinks on the bedside table.

Inwardly laughing at the shocked look that crossed Naruto's face, and the way it immediately glowed bright red, at having realized that what he thought Sasuke was going to do and what he had done were on completely different ends of the universe, Naruto gave a weak shove at the middle of Sasuke's hard chest, glaring even harder at the deep laugh that resonated from the depths of Sasuke's stomach.

"Y-You…!" Naruto stammered, and watched with bright fury present in his eyes as Sasuke merely quirked an elegantly shaped eyebrow, the corners of his lips twitching in an attempt at holding back an infuriating smirk. Casually clipping on the Uchiha-fan-symbol cufflinks, Sasuke simply flicked his wrist towards himself in a silent question of 'Me?'.

Growling, Naruto shoved the raven back onto his butt, inwardly doing a little victory dance at watching the Uchiha stumble back a little bit and land on his bottom, a tad bit ungracefully. Immediately crossing his arms over his duvet-covered chest, Naruto stuck his lips out into a childish pout and glared at his boyfriend through the messy curtain of yellow. "Don't do something like that…" Naruto muttered out and immediately looked away.

Smiling at the adorable way that Naruto expressed his thoughts, Sasuke got back on his knees and leant towards his boyfriend, making sure that he showed (through body language), that he had no intention of picking on Naruto any longer.

Cradling the soft, rounded, whiskered cheeks in his hands, Sasuke titled Naruto's head up so that he could level their gazes, soft onyx meeting with shy blue. Softly tracing his thumb over the bright pink lips that he was so fond off, Sasuke bent his head a little more and gave a quick and chaste kiss to his beloved.

"Alright, I won't do it again," at Naruto's breaking of their gaze again, Sasuke hooked his index finger under the tanned boy's chin and lifted it up, such that he could once again look into the eyes that he loved to get lost it. "Anyway, I just wanted to spend a little more time with you. Yes, I do still have work, and I better be going now, because Uchiha Inc. will undoubtedly have to work their asses off these next few weeks, what with that client going off to Hyuuga Corp…"

At the sullen drop in his teme's voice, Naruto immediately clapped his hands on either side of Sasuke's face, successfully bringing the Uchiha out of his self-loathing phase and getting his attention, before gazing determinedly into his widened onyx eyes.

"Sasuke Uchiha, that incident was by no means your fault. It just so happens that that bastard of a Hyuuga had to come in and steal that opportunity. You had no idea that he was going to do so, and if he hadn't had come, you would have bagged the client ASAP, without even having to present anything." Sasuke's eyebrows shot up a little, and his lips parted just a tad. He had no idea that Naruto had that much faith in him, seeing as how he had never been interested in Sasuke's rants whenever he started rambling on and on in business jargon, jargon that went completely over Naruto's head.

"Stop putting yourself down for something that you couldn't control, okay?" at the soft tone that Naruto had used, Sasuke snapped back to reality and immediately straightened himself up. He knew that Naruto had faith in him, much more than he thought he did, and obviously Sasuke was not going to let him down. He also knew that somehow, one way or another, him constantly beating himself up, like how Naruto had done so to himself in the past, was hurting his beloved, and Sasuke had vowed to never hurt Naruto, no matter what happens.

Smiling and nodding determinedly to himself as well as Naruto, Sasuke clasped his own pale hands around the tanned, tiny ones on his face, and brought them to his lips, gently pressing his lips to the fingertips.

"I promise I won't." With that, Sasuke placed one last lingering kiss on the awaiting lips of his sunshine, grabbed his undone tie, briefcase and car keys, and brisk-walked out of the penthouse. It was already 7.35A.M., and Sasuke had to be at work at 8.00A.M. sharp.

But Sasuke knew that the angry glares sent by his father throughout the day for his 'tardiness as an Uchiha, two words that should never be placed in the same sentence', would be worth the few minutes that he got to spend with his little cherub of a boyfriend,

Because Naruto was worth every little sacrifice and every little thing that Sasuke had to bear. And Sasuke knew, that no matter whatever Naruto did, he would still love him all the same.

No matter the mistake and betrayal that he might do (_probably not_) in the future.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey Guys! Yeah, this is just a _reaaaaaaaally_ short chapter on the 'Calm before the storm' part of their relationship. The more...'intense' part of their relationship will come in later, with Neji and all that other stuff. So yeah, stay tuned, and please don't forget to review! It'll make me really happy and i'll upload the next few chapters at an even more faster rate! :D

On a side note, i won't be able to update for quite a while, as i've got my examinations coming up quite soon, so please bear with me for the upcoming 3 months at least. Yeah, i know, i really wanna get this fic done and over with as well (I'm as excited too, man!), but, studies come first... So i'm really really sorry but please understand and bear with me, yeah? Do review, and maybe when it reached 20 i'll put up the next chapter ASAP! :D

Thanks!  
ByakuSharingan


	5. Pressure & Possible Goodbyes

_Chapter 5: Pressure &amp; Possible Goodbyes_

**Disclaimer:** Nope, I do not own Naruto. All hail the one who does, Masashi Kishimoto.

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_2 Months Later…_

"Ne, S'suke, what time will you be back today?" Naruto looked up at his boyfriend from the sea of crumpled silk sheets, eyes alight with hope and desperation. He was fiddling and fidgeting nervously with his thumbs and toes, hoping that his over-working boyfriend would actually start to make time for him, after the past few stressful weeks.

The deal with the Hyuugas had only wrecked havoc in the Uchiha Inc. Company. Now, every single employee and employer of the word-famous incorporation was putting in extra hours every single day, and putting in every fiber of their being into working their asses off, just to keep up to the lightning fast speed at which Hyuuga Corp. was progressing. Many of the employees were starting to resemble robots; 7 am in, 9 pm out. All of them rarely had any time which they could keep for themselves, some even forced to work during weekends. Their social lives were cut short, and many of them were starting to feel the pressure of their crumbling relationships.

One perfect example being the one between a certain Uchiha and an Uzumaki.

Sasuke was feeling the pressure too, but he was putting in extra effort into maintaining the company. Even after Naruto had spoken to him about how it wasn't his fault that that bastard of a Hyuuga and that prideful client of (supposedly) theirs had made his merry way over to their rival's company, Sasuke still felt that it was all due to him.

He also felt that since it was his fault that everyone was starting to go to work with huge purple bags under their eyes, slumped shoulders, and dragging feet, Sasuke felt that he had to do not just a little bit more, but _double_ the amount of workload as everybody else, in order to make up for their company's (in Sasuke's words) _huge_ loss.

Sasuke would go into work at 6am every morning, and leave the office at 10pm every night. It had become routine to him for the past 2 months, ever since the day after he got a big lecture from his father for turning up to work late. I mean, you couldn't blame him for wanting to spend a few extra minutes with his lovable and extremely adorable boyfriend, yes?

However, it was the lecture that his father had given him that changed the way he thought and his attitude towards work. It changed Sasuke entirely, and because of that, the lecture also changed his relationship with his boyfriend entirely as well.

_**FLASHBACK**_

"SASUKE!"

All the employees had whipped their heads about immediately back to their computer screens, scanning the various graphs and tabulating tables, analyzing documents and signing any official letter that needed a signature. Their fingers began to type away furiously at the pristine white keyboards, and their eyes started to scan the screens dutifully, whilst praying to God that their act was believable enough to pass in the eyes of one extremely furious Fugaku Uchiha.

Storming through the walkways of the various cubicles of the Higher-Management office, Fugaku had made sure to stomp (in a dignified and manly way) his Gucci dress shoes extra hard on the soft yet prideful carpeted flooring. The floor that he was on was, as what it was called, meant for all the Higher-Managers, those who were in charge of basically the various major sections of the company, and they were also under the second-direct order of Fugaku. They were under the direct control and order of Sasuke Uchiha, who was the head of this certain floor, and whose office that was going to be barged into by a certain enraged CEO.

_The nerve of him, coming into work late after ruining our chances of taking the world by storm for good?_ Fugaku was, as everyone could tell, not at all pleased. He was thoroughly fucking pissed off with his son for what he had done, and utterly disappointed with his behavior. And Fugaku was going to make sure that his feelings were made crystal clear to Sasuke once he was done with him.

Throwing the grand French doors of his son's office open, Fugaku glared about the spacious room, taking notice of the cluttered glass desk and the fear-stricken Uchiha sitting behind it, fingers clenched so tight around the edge of his working desk that his knuckles turned white, and the extremely (more so than normal) pale features of his aristocratically handsome features. Sasuke's back was as straight as a board, and his feet just spaced far enough for him to shoot up and make an escape from the wrath of his father, if needed.

Fugaku, realizing the effect that he had on his son, decided to calm himself down a notch, knowing that and with past experiences, that speaking with a frightened Sasuke would do no good, knowing that whatever he'd have to say would land on deaf ears.

Taking a few deep, steady and much needed breaths, Fugaku closed his eyes and started to count to ten. It helped to bring down his anger, just by a little, and it was also a sign for Sasuke to brace himself for the sophisticated lecture that he was going to receive, and to make sure that he was mentally and physically ready for it. Sasuke himself took a few much needed breaths and steadied his nerves.

"I'm thoroughly disappointed in you."

That sentence was not what either of them had expected to be rolling out of Fugaku's sharp tongue. Fugaku had expected that he would be hurling insults and cursing his son and scolding him for all that he was worth after that rip off with the client, and throwing rhetorical question after rhetorical question while he watched his son just nod and bow his head obediently, whilst Sasuke had also expected the same thing. Neither of them had expected to hear those words, of which Fugaku had never uttered for a long time now to his second son, and of which Sasuke had never wanted to hear ever again in his life.

However, reality was harsh and Sasuke felt like as though he was back when he was dying for some form of recognition from his father, back when he was still in the shadows of his older brother, back when he could never please and make his father proud.

The words pierced through Sasuke's soul, it was like a dagger that had been stabbed in his back, and it was twisting around, violently ripping the flesh of his muscles.

It hurt.

Fugaku, seeing as how much those words had an effect on his son; the blank stare, mouth agape, pale face, it all reminded him of when he used to tell Sasuke that he 'was not good enough', was 'not pleased by his work', and that his 'brother did so much better'. It brought to him those times when he would chastise Sasuke, and usually after those long, sometimes hushed lectures, Sasuke would work extra hard, putting in more of himself and his effort into his work just so that he could please his father and prove to him that he was just as good as his brother was.

Right now, Fugaku wanted that Sasuke back. He wanted the Sasuke that would put more of himself than anyone could into his work, just to make his father proud again. Fugaku wanted that Sasuke who would go the extra mile, just to hear the words 'I'm proud of you' escape the lips of the father whom he held such a high regard for. And Fugaku knew that the only way to achieve that Sasuke was to bring him down with his words, just like how he used to back in the past.

* * *

Sasuke clenched his eyes shut, gripping even harder onto the plain black tie that was looped around his neck. He was doing his very best to not remember the harsh words and spiteful glares that he had received from his father that day, praying for the hurtful memories to just fade away, but he knew they wouldn't. They never will.

All his life Sasuke had been working hard just to make his father proud, just so that he could see a smile on his face when he achieved something good, and not the usual frown. Sasuke had thought that he did, and that he would never experience being on the ugly side of his father ever again, but it seems like he would, and he did. He was back to being the little Sasuke, the Sasuke that strived for excellence, strived to be the best son that his father so badly wanted, strived to make his father proud of his existence, and not always look down on him and compare him with his perfect brother.

Opening his eyes once again, Sasuke made a resolution. He was going to work his ass off again, just as he had done before, and he was going to make up for his mistake. He was going to do whatever it takes just so that he could make his father proud once more. He will do it, regardless of whatever it takes.

Feeling small, soft hands curl around his fingers, prying them apart from the suffocating tie, Sasuke glanced down to see a blonde mop of hair that was pressed extremely close to his Armani Exchange white dress shirt, and skillful nimble fingers working their magic on the tie, tying a neat and successful Windsor knot.

"You didn't exactly answer my question, teme." Sasuke couldn't find it in himself to fight off the smirk that was crawling up his face, and took hold of the feminine hands that he loved so much into his own, calloused and much bigger and manlier ones. Bringing them up to his lips, Sasuke kissed ever finger, and bit playfully on the right pinky for extra effect.

"Sorry, babe. Just had something on my mind, that's all." Sasuke placed Naruto's hands back on his chest and wrapped his boyfriend up in his arms. He knew how much Naruto enjoyed being cocooned in his arms, more so when he was wearing his cologne; David Beckham's Intense Instinct.

Giggling softly to himself, Naruto pulled his head out and away from the muscular chest of his boyfriend's and glanced up, with so much hope and happiness dancing about his blue eyes. He was hoping that maybe this positive reaction to his question would mean that Sasuke would finally be coming home early, finally be able to spend time with him after so long of not doing so. Feeling a bright grin light up his childish features, Naruto once again voiced out his question.

"You'll be coming home early today?" Naruto was sure that he was going to get a 'yes', along with another bone crushing hug and playful nips to his ear, but he did not expect to get a downcast look thrown his way, and especially not the way in which his boyfriend's shoulders slumped and his smirk was completely wiped off of his face. The arms around him loosened themselves a little, allowing Naruto to put some distance between him and Sasuke.

Immediately losing his smile, Naruto gently shrugged himself off of the protective circle of Sasuke's arms, and padded silently back to the bed. Quietly slipping the covers over himself and made sure that he faced away from Sasuke, made sure that his boyfriend couldn't see and feel his disappointment.

Letting out a sigh, Sasuke ran a hand down his face and then through his gel-slicked hair. He knew that Naruto was expecting him to return home earlier today, seeing as how he told him that the company was starting to pick up once again and that Naruto could expect him to come home earlier from then on, but Sasuke still had work to do. He still had to make sure that everything was running smoothly. Sure, things were looking better down where the ants were working, but things only picked up a little bit a little higher up the ladder of Uchiha Inc. They were still feeling the pressure.

"I'm sorry, okay? I honestly am. We both know that I want to spend time with you, too. I want to come home early too, you kn—"

"Then why don't you?" Turning around as quick as he could, Naruto angled his body such that he was facing Sasuke, but still managed to seem as though he was the victim, the weaker one (noting as how he was wrapped up all protectively in the baby blue bed sheets, once that matched his eyes, Sasuke notes absent-mindedly).

Letting out an exasperated sigh, Sasuke settled down onto the side of the bed, making sure that he was not too close or too far from Naruto, knowing that when it came to arguing, this was the perfect distance to put between each other. Naruto wanted to make sure that Sasuke did not take this lightly (distance would be too short), and that he would still be able to hold onto Sasuke if he ever decided he would up and leave, if the argument got too out of hand.

"I'm in charge of the managers of the various sections of the company. Things are only going fine down below, but things aren't going as smoothly in the higher-ups. There are still things to take care of and I'm not sure how long it will take. I promise—"

"Don't make promises you can't keep." It was barely a whisper, but Sasuke had heard it all the same.

Feeling anger seeping through his veins at lightning speed, Sasuke momentarily got blinded by rage, and that sentence was all it took for him to spill everything out, not meaning any of them at all.

"You honestly think that you mean that little to me? Naruto—" Hearing his name being growled out in a way that Naruto had never heard before made him flinch and shy away, burrowing himself further into the heap of silk— "fuck, don't make this difficult okay? You're not the only victim here! I'm suffering as well, too, you know! You honestly think I enjoy working my ass off and not getting to spend any time for myself? You honestly think that I enjoy wasting my life away buried under heaps of work every single day for more than 12 hours? I loathe it, but I can't do anything about it! The company is going through what it's going through because of me, my fucking mistake! The company that my father worked so hard for to build up almost fell apart because of me! It's my responsibility, so I obviously have to be the one to make things right again! And it seems that in order to do that, I have to do what I have been doing, and I have to continue doing it! _You're not the only victim here, stop acting like one when you're not even experiencing what I'm going through!_"

Both of the room's occupants stood stock-still, one frozen in horror at realizing what he had said, and the other in hurt and pain. Only silence fell upon them, and Sasuke didn't know what to do to fill it up, no words could go past the gigantic lump in his throat right then, and his mouth refused to co-operate with him, to force his lips to at least mouth out the words of apology that Naruto so desperately deserved to hear.

The one bright blue had dimmed, and Sasuke did not know what to do to get the brightness back. Tears were rimming over the golden-lashed edges, and his pupil has dilated so much had had completely broke off any form of eye contact with him. Sasuke desperately wanted to scream out his apologies, to go down on one knee and just plead to Naruto for his forgiveness, because he knew that Naruto deserved none of whatever he had just did and said. He desperately wanted to hold him back in his arms, back in the place where he could just show how much he was sorry, and how much Naruto still and always will mean to him, to show just how much that he loved him, and always will.

But before he could do any of that, Naruto broke the silence first.

"Your work is more important to you than I am. I'm not even close to meaning anything to you."

Coherent thoughts flew out of his mind, and Sasuke recoiled, feeling as though someone had socked him in the gut and gave a stinging slap to the side of his face. It was like as though everything that he had said fell on deaf ears, about how he was struggling with work and the disdainful glares he received on a daily basis from his father, and nothing had made its way into Naruto's ears and to his mind. He was still pulling the victim card, wanting to make Sasuke guilty. But being the prideful Uchiha that he was, Sasuke was not going to fall for it, and he braced himself for his rebound attack.

"You know what, think whatever it is that you want to think. You're not the fucking victim here yet you keep whining and acting like one. It's always about you, isn't it? It's 'Naruto this', 'Naruto that', well you know what? I've had enough of this shit. I've had enough of you pulling out the 'victim' card because I'm sick of it. You've never experienced what it's like being me and putting up with a prideful father, so what would you know? You were an orphan ever since you were born, you don't have any parents, so what the _fuck_ would _you_ know? I've been suffering for the past 2 months yet you don't seem to give a fuck about me. You dare call yourself a good boyfriend? Fuck off."

Sasuke, not seeming aware of what that was pouring out of his mouth like hot lava that scalded all that it was being directed at, snatched his jacket and briefcase from the desk and stormed out of the house. Being too blinded by rage and hurt at how his boyfriend would think so lowly of him, to the extent where Sasuke wouldn't even take care of his boyfriend. It only managed to fuel his anger, and he yanked the car door open, shoved his key in, and once he heard the smooth roaring of the engine, he sped off down the driveway and the roads, to Uchiha Inc.

* * *

Back home, in the soft, king-sized bed, soft, small whimpers could be heard from the small hill of blue silk.

Sasuke's words had struck a chord that Naruto thought had been buried and long forgotten, but just being reminded about the undeniable fact that yes, he was an orphan and that he had no parents, caused a barrage of tears to escape the crystal blue of Naruto's precious glittering gems.

Naruto was doing his best to stay strong, to keep his head up high, because he had heard all of those comments before, and he had managed to shrug them off, choosing instead to prove them that he could still make it, that he could still pull through and be successful.

However, hearing those same few words that had been said by so many others before, back when he was only five years old, by the one person that Naruto knew he loved with all his heart, caused everything to come back flooding out. It was then, that Naruto realized, that it was not the same. Hearing it from random people whom he could not even remember and who was not important to him was much more different and far less hurtful than hearing it from the one person whom you wanted to spend the rest of his life with.

The words of Sasuke constantly made their way about Naruto's fragile little mind, rebounding off of the walls and flying through his head, repeating themselves over and over again.

_You were an orphan ever since you were born, you don't have any parents, so what the fuck would you know?_

_You dare call yourself a good boyfriend? Fuck off._

Crying even harder than he did before, Naruto curled in on himself even more and just let it go. He let out all his frustrations and anger and sorrow at being left alone to his own thoughts and company for the past 2 months, of being shut out and put aside while his own boyfriend went on and continued his pursuit for his father's acceptance, He let out all that he was feeling, about how he felt rejected, about how he felt like he was alone in the world once again, back when he hadn't had met Sasuke, back when everyone had their backs turned towards him, when no one had bothered to help him up when he was constantly being pushed and pulled downwards, towards the pit of despair and unhappiness. He let out all the sorrow that he was feeling, at being by himself again, having to stand up for himself and fend off the world on his own, because no one was no longer there by his side, to fight for him anymore.

His relationship with Sasuke was falling apart. It was ripping at the seams, and neither of them knew what the other was going through. They had never fought like this before, never in their 14 months of being together as boyfriends. Naruto had never expected that he would hear those same hateful words from his own boyfriend's mouth. Naruto had never expected their relationship to hit the rocky waters, and right then it seemed like it was going to be like the Titanic.

All grand and luxurious at first, but without heeding each others' struggles and pains, they were going to collide with the harshness of reality, and sink.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! I'm really sorry for not updating in a looooong time, but anyway, here it is! The latest chapter! This chapter is, as you can tell, basically them and their journey on the 'rocky road'. Things aren't exactly looking up right now for either of them, but what exactly happened that roped Neji in? How did Neji get involved with this drama? Stay tuned to find out!

Review, and maybe the commercials won't last for too long!

Yours Sincerely,  
ByakuSharingan


	6. Pressure & Possible Goodbyes (Part 2)

_Chapter 6: Pressure &amp; Possible Goodbyes (Part 2)_

**Disclaimer**: Hate to break it to you, but Naruto belongs to none of us.

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_Later That Night…_

Dragging his feet along the cold concrete pavement of the Uchiha Inc. multi-storey car park, Sasuke Uchiha could only shut his eyes tight and take in deep, steadying breaths to help calm his nerves down a notch. The full impact of whatever had happened in the morning had finally hit him; he finally realized, with a trembling heart and dry mouth what he had said and how badly he must have hurt his magnificent boyfriend, all due to some mindless slip of tongue that was due in the heat of the moment.

Naruto obviously did not deserve whatever it was that was hurled his way. Naruto definitely did not deserve the shit that Sasuke had not-so-kindly handed to him. He did not deserve any of that after all that he had been through. He did not deserve any of it after how much he had suffered, back when was just a newborn child up to when he met Sasuke. The boy had suffered far too much and experienced too much for someone as young as him. And Sasuke had no right whatsoever to say what he had said, to have done what he did.

_I'm such an asshole._

Naruto was the strongest person that he knew, he was the only one in Sasuke's mind who could smile and giggled through the barrage of unneeded insults and unnecessary hardships. He had put up with enough shit to last a few lifetimes in just under 20 years. He had been the best boyfriend that Sasuke could ever ask for; he had everything that Sasuke would ever dream of looking for in a partner.

Naruto was kind, loving, understanding, confident, and someone who never gave up. He was good naturedly stubborn (although Sasuke begged to differ at times), was constantly showering people with his love and joy, and he always saw the positives instead of the negatives, no matter how little or small they may be.

Naruto was also unbelievably beautiful. He had the looks of an angel, and the character of one as well. To Sasuke, Naruto could be compared to a lobster; tough and strong on the outside, but extremely soft and lovable on the inside. Sasuke loved that about Naruto. He loved his strength, his inability to give up, his love for the world that had kicked him aside and spat at him ever since he was born to when he was sixteen, his ability to radiate joy and light up every single room. Sasuke also loved his cute moments, when he would take just a tad too long to understand something, and when he finally did and caught up with everyone, a tomato-like blush would creep up his neck and wreck havoc all over his face. Sasuke loved many things about Naruto, too many to list.

But the one thing that Sasuke loved the most about Naruto was the fact that Naruto was able to love him unconditionally.

However, now Sasuke wasn't sure whether that statement would still be deemed true. He had hurt Naruto greatly with his words, and he knew that he would probably never be forgiven. Naruto, like a lobster, was extremely fragile on the inside. Once he loses his outer shell, he's left bare and exposed to the cruelty of the world, and just one little nudge to his side, touch him the wrong way, and his immaculate character just falls apart.

And Sasuke was responsible for that.

He had told Naruto in the past that he would never let anything or anyone hurt him, he had promised that Naruto would never get hurt, in any form or manner. He was the one who had given Naruto hope that he didn't have to go through shit again.

Yet he had let him.

He was the cause of his pain right then.

_How painfully ironic_.

Swallowing down the huge lump in his throat that had formed ever since thoughts flooded his mind, Sasuke latched onto the handle of his car and leant against the door. What was he thinking, yelling all those stuff at Naruto? The anger that he felt then was no excuse, he still had to have watched his mouth, and not just let everything spill out and slap Naruto on the face.

Naruto had been an amazing boyfriend, no doubt about that. He had been patient with Sasuke, sitting through his boring rants about work and about how stressful his life was. He had always managed to bring about some cheer with him and brighten up Sasuke's day by simply uttering a few words and giving a few chaste yet meaningful kisses to Sasuke. He knew Sasuke just like the back of his hand; able to tell when he needed to be alone, when he needed someone to just be next to him because something drastic had happened, when he needed to de-stress just a little. Naruto had known exactly what Sasuke needed every single time, and he had done what needed to be done. He was the one constant in Sasuke's life, and Sasuke knew that he can never afford ever losing Naruto.

Naruto had successfully become a part of him, a part of him that Sasuke had no intention to get rid of. He wanted Naruto ever since he was in high school, and now that he had him, no way in hell will he ever be giving him up.

But after what happened that morning, will Naruto still want him? Is Naruto willing to give him up? Will the one person that Sasuke thought loved him unconditionally, give him up, seeing as how Sasuke had thoroughly managed to break him, break his entire character and leave him broken and exposed to the whole entire world?

Sasuke prayed will all his being that Naruto wouldn't, that Naruto was willing to give him a second chance to work things out between themselves and fix things.

Slowly pulling his car door open, Sasuke clambered in, poise and posture all swept to the back of his mind and thoughts of apologizing to Naruto took the wheel. Gazing determinedly into the exact same pair of midnight eyes in his rearview mirror, Sasuke made a resolution to make Naruto as happy as possible, to help fix Naruto, to bring him back to the person that he was before.

Sliding the key into its hole, Sasuke sped off into the late night, with his heart on his willing sleeve, open and exposed to Naruto.

* * *

"Naruto?" Sasuke quietly made his way towards the small heap on their king-sized bed, knowing that his boyfriend was still awake, even at this time of the night. Naruto never could sleep unless Sasuke was home, unless Sasuke had stepped into their house. That had been the case since two months ago, something which Sasuke felt angered by.

It was already 10:38 pm, and most of the city had gone to sleep, yet Naruto was simply too stubborn to do so, even after the countless minute lectures that he received from Sasuke due to his staying up late.

However, for a change, Sasuke was praying that Naruto was still awake, so that they could make things up, to talk and clear the fog before it could suffocate them and tear them apart.

"…Don't fucking talk to me."

Recoiling like he had been slapped in the face, Sasuke could only stare wide-eyed at the innocent looking hump on the large bed. Never had he expected Naruto to use vulgarities on him, seeing as how Naruto hated the use of foul language, based on past experiences of being on the receiving end of said insults. However, here he was, resorting to using the holy swear word that Naruto was known to have hated the most.

"…What?" Sasuke meekly whispered, hoping that he had heard wrongly, but he knew that Naruto must have been royally pissed to have to be using such words and language on him. The thought only managed to fuel Sasuke's anger towards himself for losing control over his mouth that morning, and also to fuel his depression.

"You heard me. I told you not to fucking talk to me. So just get out."

With his mouth hanging agape, Sasuke could only stare dumbfounded as the solid lump on the bed started to finally take shape. A blonde head poked out of the covers, and the person finally turned to face him, sitting upright with the huge pillow clutched tightly to his chest. However, the feature that struck Sasuke the most was that of his face. His angel's eyes had become narrow slits, brimming with unshed tears that were on the direct edge of the golden lashes, ready to spill over and roll down the scarred cheeks. The little button nose that Sasuke loved to kiss was scrunched up, pitiful sniffing sounds escaping it, and the rosy lips that Sasuke adored were pulled make in a grimace, holding back any sounds of pathetic whimpers that were threatening to escape.

Sasuke stood rooted to the spot, unable to break eye contact as the reality of how harsh his words were took its toll on him. He had never meant to hurt Naruto that badly, had never meant to hurt Naruto at all. He had never in his entire lifetime of knowing Naruto, wanted to hurt him intentionally, and he had never wanted to see Naruto suffer again.

Yet here he was, breaking down right before his eyes.

"Can you not hear me? I told you to fucking _get out_! I'm not important to anyone, much less you, so why are you wasting your fucking precious time on _me_ when you could be out there, working and striving for daddy's acceptance again, huh?" Naruto's scream brought Sasuke out of his reverie, Naruto's words shaking him down to his very core.

But he reminded himself to stay calm, knowing that if he ever got riled up again, he would only succeed in hurling the same amount of negative and hurtful comments as he had done so in the morning, and just as how Naruto was doing then.

"Look, I'm sorry okay? I'm sorry for whatever that I've said this morning, I'm sorry for the things that I've said okay? I know that I hurt you—"

"Of course you fucking did, you son of a bitch! I thought that I meant something to you. I thought that you knew that everyone was hurting inside, just at different levels. Don't you dare pull the victim card when you've never experience what the hell I have been through!" Resorting to using Sasuke's own words on himself, Naruto gripped the edges of the bed sheet so tightly that his knuckles started to turn white. He was gritting his teeth together so hard that he could feel his vein popping up at the corner of his forehead. More tears were threatening to spill over, and Naruto could not hold back the single whimper that he desperately wanted to not let go of.

"You know damn well that whatever you were saying was hurting me, yet you continued on. You don't even know what it's like to not have any parents to look up to. You don't even know what it's like to be left completely alone and to have to fend for yourself for the first 15 years of your life, Sasuke! You don't know what it's like to be me, you don't know what it's like to go through the shit that I've gone through, so don't act like you're the fucking victim here!"

Taken aback by Naruto's sudden outburst, Sasuke only managed to gaze back into petrified, pain-stricken, lonely blue orbs of his beloved. As the full gravity of the situation finally hit him, Sasuke stare back at Naruto as he finally let loose all of the things that he had kept bottled up inside ever since that morning.

"You don't fucking care about me! Your work is so much more important than your own boyfriend, yet you still have the cheek to come back here? You've already announced to the whole entire world that I'm not important to you, so why the fuck are you here? Get out!"

Glaring heatedly at his boyfriend with tear-brimming eyes, Naruto bit down painfully hard on his lower lip, trying with all his might to stop it from trembling and letting loose all the broken sobs and whimpers that he did not want Sasuke to hear. Clutching the blue silk between his small fingers, Naruto shut his eyes as tight as they could go, unable to continue keeping the gaze between his own blue and the broken, pain and hurt filled onyx of his lover.

"…I told you to lea—" Before Naruto could complete his sentence, Sasuke cut him off.

"I…I'm sorry, 'k? I…I know I hurt you, I hurt you so much. Y-you didn't deserve any of it, God, Naruto, you don't deserve to be hurt _at all_, after all the shit that you've been through. I-I _know_ that. I promised that I wouldn't hurt you, yet I did, and I'm honestly so fucking sorry, okay? I ne-never intended to say those words. _Please, believe me_."

Before Naruto heard anything at all, his eyes immediately shot open as soon as he saw Sasuke kneeling before him, grip on his forearms impossibly tight. Tears were brimming on the bottom lid of his eyes, but Naruto knew better than anyone that Sasuke was a downright stubborn bastard who, due to his pride, will never let them fall. The usually pale, pink bottom lip that was constantly pressed together in a straight, tight line was being held back by a pristine, straight white row of immaculate teeth.

Going back up to his eyes, Naruto nearly gave in. Then and there, he could see the amount of pain and sorrow the Uchiha was going through, probably due to the thought of Naruto leaving him once and for all. The purple bags that Naruto hadn't noticed before were clear as day, and he knew that Sasuke had been going through shit 24/7, without adequate sleep. However, it was the sight of the midnight orbs that took Naruto's breath away, because he could see, crystal clearly, the emotional turmoil that Sasuke was going through. He could practically feel himself being engulfed by the amount of emotions that were swimming about in his eyes; sorrow, hurt, frustration, _fear_ of Naruto leaving, _hate_ at himself for letting their argument get this far, but most of all _pain_, at the thought of having to watch Naruto walk away.

Taking a deep breath, Naruto nodded to himself inwardly, and began to sort through his own mess of emotions that took up his whole entire being. Sasuke was hurting, but so was he. He still couldn't find it in himself to forgive Sasuke for what he had said that morning, he doubted that he would even in the future. However, it took Sasuke for Naruto to be breaking down and possibly leave him in order for him to fight for the relationship? He had never called Naruto back once during the entire day after their argument, never even bothered to drop a text to say that he was sorry. Naruto had been dull and confused (about where their relationship was standing and about what would happen next) for the whole entire day yet Sasuke didn't even seem troubled by it, not until he came back home.

_Did he even mean anything to Sasuke anymore?_

Not being able to find any other way to find out the answer to the question, Naruto took a deep breath and braced himself for his question, and answer.

"…Will you make time for me?"

At the dimming of black eyes and hunching of broad shoulders, Naruto knew right then that Sasuke still put his work before Naruto. Sure, Naruto understood that Sasuke had work to do, but at the expense of his already crumbling relationship? Their relationship was nearing the iceberg, yet Sasuke was not willing to change course, even if Naruto was? He was given the reigns, yet he continued on, willing to hurt Naruto just to get what he wanted. Naruto had given him an option, even after clearing showing that he was willing to leave Sasuke, that he couldn't take the empty nights and loneliness anymore, yet Sasuke still put his work before his own boyfriend, the person whom he wanted to spend the rest of his life with?

Harshly shrugging off the strong hands that were on his arms, Naruto scrambled away from Sasuke and roughly ripped the sheets away from his body. Stomping his way over to their shared walk-in closet, Naruto yanked the nearest pair of skinny Levi's, a pair of orange Converse, and an American Apparel hoodie. Naruto slammed the grand wooden door shut, before letting the tears fall once again.

As he pulled his jeans over his slender, tan legs and boyshorts, Naruto mulled over the fact that he was once again clearly thrown aside and rejected, like a piece of trash. He had open up his hand to Sasuke, allowing him to once again work together with Naruto and fix their relationship, but then, Naruto painfully realized that he didn't mean anything to Sasuke.

He was second to Sasuke's work.

Wiping his eyes on the sleeves of his too-big hoodie, Naruto unlocked the door, grabbed his necessities and raced out of the house, without a destination in mind.

This was their first ever fight in their history, yet things were already getting this bad. They had never fought before, so what was he supposed to do in order to make things right? What was he supposed to do in order to prevent their relationship from officially hitting the rocks and sinking?

What was he to do, when he was the only one willing to save their soon-to-be one-sided relationship?

Naruto, unable to cope with all the questions that were going about his pretty little mind right then, stepped into the nearest alcoholic shop that he could find. Not taking notice of the rather familiar name, due to being blinded by the bundle of bursting emotions that he was feeling inside, Naruto took one step into the rather sophisticated (for a bar) building and decided that it was just best for him to drink his night away, hoping that it would get him to forget all of his troubles and his relationship for the night. Praying to God that alcohol had the same effect on him as it did with his other friends, Naruto hoped that, for just one time in two months, Naruto would feel the slightest bit carefree once again.

To any of his friends, Naruto was never and will never be an alcoholic, for he detested the taste of alcohol. But if any of them were to find him there right then, they knew that things were hard.

_Very hard._

And Naruto didn't know what to do to get things the right side up again.

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**Author's Note**: Shit's about to hit the roof, my dear readers. What's gonna happen next? Will Neji finally, finally, come into the story? What about Sasuke and Naruto's relationship? Review, and I guarantee that the commercials won't last for too long!

Anyway I'm really sorry for not updating in a while, but please do leave reviews! This chapter is just about them and how it all went downhill. The next chapter onward is when things are gonna go down. So stay tuned!


	7. New People and New Beginnings

_Chapter 7: New People &amp; New Beginnings_

**Disclaimer**: Nope, I do not own Naruto. I, however, am harbouring a great load of depression because of the official ending of Naruto, but heck, that doesn't mean that we must stop writing fanfiction! C'mon guys, stay with me and let's keep the #Naruto Legacy alive, you hear me?! ALIVE!

* * *

_4 Months Later..._

_4 months, and still nothing has changed..._

Wrapping numb, small, tanned fingers around the cool, condensation-covered cocktail glass tightly, tanned eyelids fluttered closed as their owner prepared to tilt his head back to down his nth drink of the night. The strong taste of vodka numbing his mind and senses as it washed down his throat, along with the light fizz of lime was much welcomed, and was greatly looked forward to, seeing as how the alcohol was slowly starting to deaden his mind and thought processes; preventing the owner from thinking coherently at all.

Paying visits to this particular gay club during the late hours of the night and sometimes even wee hours in the morning had become quite a habit, its official development Naruto couldn't exactly point out. The first visit to this club had Naruto hooked, seeing as how the alcohol had in fact done much wonder for his depressed and frustrated, both sexually and emotionally so, soul and body. The tingles and godly light-headedness that came along with the circulation of alcohol around his body did wonders for Naruto, and all of a sudden whenever he was experiencing a rough patch (which, sadly to say, were becoming more frequent as the days went by) in his relationship, Naruto would turn to this club and basically just drink the night away, drink all his problems and sadness away.

Ever since the first night, which was honestly one of the toughest nights Naruto had ever had, things between himself and Sasuke grew even more tensed and heated. No, there were no more fights, be it verbally or physically, no hatred or heated glares barely concealed by a thin layer of self-restrain and control. No, there was none of that. Instead, what the couple was experiencing was; what the definition of tension was to the famous couple was that of a fore-see able ending and break up.

They were no longer talking. They never had a decent conversation anymore other than a few strained 'hellos' and their conversations lasted no more than a few basic and mundane sentences, ones said only between two awkward strangers who had no intention of getting to know the other more. Their longest conversation for the past 4 months had only lasted a mere two minutes, neither knowing how to prolong the much needed conversation, neither knowing what to say in order to get back to how they were before.

It was their first fight the whole entire one and a half years that they had been together, but who knew that the consequences of it would have been so drastic? Who knew that this one fight would have been enough for them to, possibly, break up?

They didn't really bother to meet up with the other; they never held any dates or just random hang-outs and get-togethers anymore. They didn't text, neither knowing what to say to get a conversation started, because starting a conversation with someone whom you had been hurt by or had hurt deeply with a simple 'Hey!' seemed a little far-fetched and honestly, stupid. They couldn't even call each other, because both of them knew that if they did, and the other picked up, there would only be silence hanging in the air between them, and sooner or later either one would hang up, and all that the other would hear would be the painful sound of the monotonous beeping, signifying the end of the nonexistent call.

Kind of like their relationship right then.

Neither one of them knew what to say, how to say anything. Naruto had no idea what to do, seeing as how he couldn't even stand to actually look the Uchiha in the eye and be painfully reminded of the things that he had said that day 4 months back. Naruto couldn't stand to be in the same room with the one person whom he held so close to his heart, the one person who actually had stood up for him and was actually different from all those others who had put him down and shunned him greatly.

Or so he thought.

Sure, Sasuke had indeed apologized, but the wound had become so big and gaping, infected and oozing pus, that a simply 'sorry' was not enough to patch it back up. And the thing was that Naruto had actually offered, had given Sasuke the choice to be handed with the necessary medical equipment needed to help that wound be healed and get the skin and flesh back to normal (as much normal as it could be), but he had outright refused to take them and left Naruto dealing with his wound and hurt all on his own.

Sasuke wasn't willing to make time for him.

All that mattered to the navy-haired man was his work and his father's acceptance once again.

Naruto was below that.

Fresh, crystalline tears started welling up behind the tanned eyelids, and a single tear, the first of many more to come, slid down a scarred, tightly clenched cheek, staining his alcohol-caused pink-tinted cheek. Blond brows furrowed as Naruto tried desperately to keep a hold on his reigns, to not break down once _again_, in the exact same bar, on the exact same stool, drinking the exact same drink.

It was a vicious cycle that had no intention of stopping.

Oh how Naruto wanted it to end. How he wanted this pathetic cycle of mourning and crying over his pathetic and crumbling relationship to end. How he wanted this malicious cycle of having to constantly seek refuge and solitude in this bar because he couldn't stand being in his house, the house which held so many memories of happier times with Sasuke, back when they were much happier, when things were so smooth and he was practically on cloud nine every single day.

He hated the memories, he hated the Naruto in those memories. He hated how that Naruto was so happy, rejoicing and just basking in love and affection that was practically thrown his way which and every way. He hated how that Naruto was able to laugh and smile without a care in the world, how that Naruto didn't have to force or strain his facial muscles to just put on a simple twitch of lips. He hated how that Naruto was so _loved_.

Because that Naruto was the opposite of who he was now.

Gently placing the glass back on its same ring of water, Naruto took a few deep breaths, enough to calm his rattled and shaking nerves, and to hopefully stop the thoughts from flooding and taking recesses in his mind. The tears slowly stopped with each deep and shaky breath that Naruto exhaled, and his eyelids fluttered open to reveal bright, crystal blue orbs.

It was honestly tough having to pull through those four months on his own, having to turn down offers of get-togethers by his friends and having to constantly make up an excuse as to why he was not able to join them. He had completely isolated his social life and it was close to nonexistent, the only thread that it was hanging on by being the constant visits to this particular bar that he always forgot the name of, even though it did ring a bell or two just before he pushed the glass doors opened. The rare occasions where he had bumped into his friends at the super mart or in the park, when he had to get groceries for his low-in-supply kitchen or to simply clear his head the healthy way, Naruto had to pull a strained and obviously fake smile, one that Ino Yamanaka, a close friend of the blond, had noticed immediately.

Naruto had to sit through a whole hour of interrogation by the angrily worried blonde, all the while insisting that he was fine and that nothing was wrong, that he was not going through any problems whatsoever and that Ino had nothing to worry about.

Ino, needless to say, was obviously not convinced, but she knew how stubborn Naruto could get when he wanted to, and he was plain _reluctant_ to let his friend in on what was bothering him, something which irked Ino.

Because Ino knew that whatever Naruto was facing had to be something extremely big, something that he couldn't shoulder on his own, and had affected him to the extent that he wasn't even who he used to be anymore. But Naruto wouldn't budge, and feeling nothing but anxiety, dread, and plain hurt, Ino had left Naruto's cold and uninviting home, one which used to be so loud and bursting with love, care, and _home_, and had left Naruto feeling much emptier than ever.

He hadn't meant to indirectly show that he didn't trust Ino enough to let her in on her relationship issues. He just didn't feel the need to spread the word around, that things between Sasuke and himself were on the rocks, and both of them had practically had to walk on eggshells around the other the past few months. He didn't feel the need to tell her and bother her with his own personal issues that he himself should focus and fix, seeing as how Ino had her own share of problems to deal with and handle on her own.

Naruto had done what any good friend would have; leave their friends out of his own problems and deal with them on his own. That had been the case for the past 20 years of his existence, so why break the chain now? He had only had himself to rely on during his whole entire life, aside from Sasuke, and he was able to fix any problem and overthrow any obstacle that was in his way the entire journey, so what made this problem any different?

Maybe it being a seemingly unsolvable problem between himself and the one person whom he could turn to and lean on would suffice.

Burying his blond head in the makeshift pillow that his arms provided, Naruto could only start to hold back desperate sobs and pathetic whimpers as the reality that he just might not be able to solve and fix things with the one person who he wanted to spend the rest of eternity with, crashed down on him.

It was a vicious cycle that had no intention of stopping.

* * *

Pale, lavender tinted eyes roamed around the figures of the club, watching with faint amusement at how the various bodies that were pulsating and throbbing were all moulded together on the dance floor, moving to the discreetly-hidden seductive techno beat that the DJ had put on. Hands were roaming over flat chests, pert, tight cheeks were being grinded by denim clad crotches, and heads were thrown back to reveal long, unmarked columns that were simply begging to be ravished and devoured.

The alcohol in their systems was finally doing its job.

Neji watched, bemused, as various men performed the different stages of the 'Bedding Process', as Neji had so kindly put it, on different, some aware and some not, ukes. They were either successful, and even lucky enough to have the other male willing to carry onto the next stage, or were beaten down by angry, possessive (and when Neji says possessive, he _means_ possessive. No straight man's possessiveness of his girl could rival that of a gay seme of his uke) boyfriend, and thus failing his little mission and having to walk dejected back to wherever he came from, or just start on another new target.

Those that were sitting by the tables were just getting started, having just only stepped foot onto new territory and therefore declaring the start of their mission. Those on the dance floor were already, successfully, at stage two, having getting to know each other enough (basically their name, and their willingness to participate and help complete this mission), and were just getting started on exploring new territory, touching places that they have never touched before and becoming one, although not yet physically, with the other person. Neji noted, with a slight tilt of his lips, that those that usually got to stage two would most probably get to stage three.

This particular stage was, of course, the official fucking and thus, completion of the mission. There were various pairs already leaving the dance floor, either going into the rest rooms that were oh-so graciously spacious, or exiting the club hastily through the front and main door, and all of these couples were panting and breathing hard, bead of perspiration trailing down their foreheads and some even already sporting bright red marks on their necks.

It all seemed a little pathetic to Neji, seeing as how these people were willing to even throw away their relationships aside for just a one night stand (as most cases ended up as). However, it was also a little fun, as sadistically-pleasurable as it may be to Neji, how he got to break pathetic and unfaithful couples apart. It was fun getting to see how some of them would still carry on as per normal with their own partners, even though he knew that one of them was being unfaithful, and he simply loved and relished in the joy when the person that he cheated with finally was exposed, which brought them to the end of their seemingly perfect relationship.

That was the reason he was down back here again, back at the famous (or infamous, whichever way you put it) gay bar that the Hyuuga Corporation had opened up. It was relatively new, all thanks to the extra cash that they managed to reel in due to the client that they snatched away from Uchiha Inc.

Neji wanted to find a new toy to play with tonight, and he was looking for potential victims that would suit his taste.

Once again scanning the men that were seated at the bar and tables, Neji could only stand transfixed as his eyes caught the sight of one pile of sunny-golden hair hidden by a pair of slim, honey-golden arms. Trailing his eyes down the blond's body, Neji shifted uncomfortably in his skin-tight black skinnies as he felt himself start to harden, causing a slight bulge to appear between his thick, muscular legs.

The blond hair led downwards towards a long, tan neck that was completely unmarred, which led to a scantily clad, black crop top wearing torso. The straps were a little loose on the shoulder area, and the right one was slipping, all the more making the blond look even more inviting and desperate to get laid. A slim, narrow waist only spread out and widened to feminine, curved hips that would have the boy be mistaken for a girl any day, and Neji could obviously tell that this boy did his squats. Tight, pert butt cheeks were squeezed into and pushing the acid-washed denim daisy dukes to their limits, if the visibility of his ass' contours weren't enough to tell. The high-waist shorts could only go so low, and revealed the section of the boy's anatomy where his bottom met his legs.

Neji licked his suddenly dry lips, becoming even more aroused by the mental image of having to pound that delectable and extremely fuckable ass, and he wanted nothing more than to be able to pound into that hot, wet hole whilst having those shapely, graciously long and unmarred legs wrapped around his own set of narrow hips. God, those legs were insanely beautiful. Even though the boy looked to be rather short, his legs seriously made up for it. Being impossibly long and not having a single blemish to mar their appearance, and being as shapely as that of a girl's, Neji could only watch blankly as the images in his mind grew even more erotic, and his dick grow even more tight and was struggling to escape the confines of his pants.

_Target, locked-on._

However, Neji, being the Hyuuga that he was, had to be composed in order to get to put mission 'Bed The Blond' into action.

Taking in a few deep breaths, and forcing images of vaginas and breasts into his mind, Neji smirked inwardly at having his penis immediately deflate at them, and he had set about working on his way towards the unsuspecting blond.

* * *

Naruto felt the presence of someone taking their seat on the stool that was on his right, and he heard the deep, sultry voice that rang about in his ears as it ordered a martini, and Naruto visibly shivered as he felt a cool pair of eyes land on him, practically drilling into him and seeing right through him.

He couldn't help but miss how the intensity of that gaze was similar to that of the ones that Sasuke usually gave him.

As Naruto threw himself back into his brooding phase, he vaguely registered the faint rustling sound of clothes emitted by the person next to him, and couldn't help the spike in his curiosity until he felt a thick, rather heavy jacket being cautiously placed on his shoulders. The slightly strong, although not overwhelming enough for Naruto to wince from, scent of Eternity Aqua by Calvin Klein. It was just the right amount and Naruto found himself burying his petite frame deeper into the confines of the genuine leather.

This sudden act of kindness, one that Naruto had not received from the one person whom he wanted it the most from, being given to him by a random stranger, had tears prick at the corners of his eyes, and Naruto could feel the sensitive tissue ripping and aching once again, but the pain was all but a dull ache, seeing as how his eyes had become relatively used to be leaking tears nowadays.

Cautiously peeking up from underneath golden bangs that shielded his face, Naruto glanced over at the man beside him, and let the unspoken question be said through the slight tilt of his head and the small 'o' formation of his peachy-pink lips, as he looked up at the towering brunette. However, Naruto couldn't help the little once-over that he found was necessary, and he bit his bottom lip between his pristine white teeth in response.

Long, brown hair worthy of every single female's envy cascaded down in smooth tresses had Naruto wondering whether it felt as smooth as it looked. Strong, well-defined eyebrows perches above pale, lavender-tinted eyes that seemed to be able to draw anyone in were filled with a slight hint of amusement, and a sharp nose that was tilted a little higher in the air than most gave off the pride that this man held for himself. Thin, pale pink lips were lifted oh so precariously upwards on the right side, and it reminded Naruto so much of the smirk that Sasuke would give him that he felt his cheeks heating up.

Trailing his blue eyes further down the 6-7 foot stature of the man, Naruto could only watch unblinkingly as the long, muscular arms flexed and strained with every slight movement, the muscles rippling even by just reaching out to grab onto the glass that the bartender had set on the counter before him. A tight, black wife-beater was stretched over a hard, muscular chest and abdomen, tight enough to be able to outline the six pack that the man had, as well as his well-defined chest.

Naruto blushed even harder at the thought of being cocooned by the strong arms, and being pressed tightly against the undoubtedly smooth, hard chest that had his pants tightening just by the images popping into his mind of doing so. Glancing further down, Naruto noted the definition of the thigh and calf muscles that displayed themselves with every single slight movement.

Now, Naruto didn't have a fetish or anything, but he loved it when semes worked out and he loved well-defined men. He loved how hot they looked with their muscles and honestly, who didn't? However, Naruto was still unsure as to why this man had given him his own jacket, when Naruto clearly did not ask.

Neji had to bite down on his tongue to prevent from moaning out loud at the extremely seductively-innocent look that was being sent his way by the feminine blond. The way those eyes seemed to sparkle, even being coated by a thick layer of alcohol-induced haze, and the way the red-specked button nose scrunched up in confusion along with the light biting of a full bottom lip only fuelled on Neji's erection, but he managed to answer the unasked question in the end.

"You seem to be a little cold, so I thought I could warm you up a little," Neji let his lips curl up even more to form into a natural smile, but he couldn't bring himself to get all seductive yet. From what he could tell from the blond, it was that this blond in particular was still a little innocent, and Neji especially loved play-time with the innocent ones, because they were the ones who got badly hurt in the end, which helped fuel Neji's sadistic glee.

Naruto could only stare wide-eyed as the tall and well-built brunette simply smiled at him, and he let the man's reasoning actually process a little bit in his mind before it finally settled. This man had actually been kind enough to offer him his jacket, without Naruto even asking for it.

"... Thank you," Naruto let out the barely audible whisper, but by the way the man's eyes softened and his smile died down a little, Naruto knew that he had heard him all the same. Naruto was honestly touched by this stranger's little act of kindness, something which he had not been on the receiving end of for quite a while, and also something which he had not received from a particular raven, even though it was him whom Naruto wanted it form the most.

Tears started welling up in Naruto's eyes once again as that thought flew by his mind. It was Sasuke whom Naruto wanted kindness from, it was Sasuke whom Naruto wanted care and concern from, it was _Sasuke_ whom Naruto wanted _love_ from, yet it wasn't Sasuke who was giving it to him this time, it was some random stranger.

A random stranger who actually found that Naruto's well-being, someone whom he had no idea about and had never met before in his entire life, more important than his own. A random stranger found him more important than Sasuke did.

Unfortunately, Naruto couldn't stop the first few tears from spilling over his eyelids before successfully hiding his face. He couldn't hide his tears from the stranger, who had been paying extra close attention to him ever since his quite murmur of a 'thanks'. He couldn't stop himself from showing his weak side from the brunet man.

_Way to give a strong first impression, Uzumaki._

Hiding his face behind his soft palms again, Naruto tried to quell down his tears and sobs to a minimum, but he was failing miserably. The desire of wanting Sasuke to be there with him, to want Sasuke to be the one doing all of those things for him, to show that he cared and that he still thought about Naruto, was too much. Having all his wants and needs to be fulfilled by someone who he didn't even _know_, for that person to be doing something that Sasuke should have been doing, it had hurt Naruto greatly.

Since when did a stranger's concern for another stranger beat that of a boyfriend's?

Apparently now.

Naruto felt completely worthless. He didn't mean enough for his own boyfriend. He didn't mean anything to his own boyfriend, to the extent where Naruto actually had felt at ease just by having a complete _stranger_ do all those things for him.

His relationship was seriously sinking.

* * *

Neji's eyes widened immediately as soon as he saw the blue eyes that sparkled with an emotion that he couldn't place his finger on just a moment ago, were leaking crystal clear, salty tears the next.

Knowing that a much more perfect moment would not come anytime soon, Neji seized this golden opportunity to finally have the blond wrapped around his finger.

Wrapping his own calloused, hard hands around the much more softer and petite wrists and hand, Neji vaguely noticed how his own hand was able to swallow up the tan, tiny ones that they were held against. Pulling down the hands that covered the rounded cheeks, Neji, for show, let out an audible gasp and immediately took the tear-stained cheeks into his own hands.

The impossible blue was now clouded over, partially due to the alcohol but mostly due to the countless emotions that Neji could see swimming about in those orbs, the two most prominent being desire and hurt.

Neji could only stare as the shade of blue constantly changed and switched colours, going from dark to light and then back to dark again, as the blond desperately tried to grab a hold onto his reigns and get his tears to stop and his sobs under control. The pitiful whimpers and pathetic cries were simply music to Neji's ears, as he flawlessly played out the role of concerned stranger, hopefully enough to convince the little blond that he was trust worthy.

The peachy, full lips were letting out short gasps of breath every few minutes, and the rounded, soft shoulders were hunching and convulsing with each sob that was let out of those delectable lips. The chin trembled with the effort to stay still, to force itself to quell down and relax, so get a hold of itself, but to no avail.

Before Neji could even utter a single word, the blond beauty before him cut him off. "W-why... Why couldn't h-he be m-more li-like _y-y-you_?" As soon as those words left his lips, the blond's body immediately convulsed into itself and his body visibly shook with the all the pent up emotion and frustration and longing that he had kept bottled up. His blue eyes shut tight as his small hands grabbed desperately at the much larger ones of his face, and he pressed them as close as they could as he finally let out all that he had kept built up in his self and mind.

Neji, however, was smirking much maliciously on the inside. So, this little blondie was in a relationship, huh? Also, from what he could tell from that question (having much experience from the past), told him that this blond's relationship was probably shaky, and that his unfortunate lover, who would have his heart ripped out from him (if he had one at all), was ignoring the blond, so much so that even Neji's simple actions of benevolence and courtesy was enough to bring the blond over the edge and to despair.

The blond would definitely be a joy to toy around with.

Slipping on his mask of beguile back on once again, Neji traced little circles under the tanned eyelids, effectively wiping away all tear stains and gently prodding the petite male to stop snivelling.

"Who?" Neji whispered, nearly as inaudible as the 'Thank you' that the blond had said earlier on, but close enough such that the blond was able to hear it all just fine. Neji waited as anxiety began its upward crawl on his spine, as his sadistic nature began to rear its ugly head.

Naruto had heard the question perfectly, but the answer to it was lodged at his throat, the lump so big that he had difficulty swallowing and wetting his throat, it becoming so dry due to all the weeping that he had done.

"_S-S-Sasuke..."_

Neji nearly recoiled as soon as the unexpected name left the peach lips of the diminutive blond. Sasuke? Oh God Neji prayed to every single God and deity that he knew of and that would listen to him when he prayed that the person whom his blond was talking about was the exact same person that was currently on Neji's mind.

If it was, and Neji was faced with the bawling blond boyfriend of the Sasuke Uchiha, someone who apparently was not happy in his relationship with the said person, then Neji would extract as much cruel and merciless joy as he could from this little prolonged play session that he will be having with the blond.

What better way to bring the Uchiha down then by attacking home?

Wanting nothing more than to confirm his hypothesis, Neji braced himself for the question and the answer which would determine his near and relatively short, but hopefully entertaining and pleasurable future.

"Sasuke? Sasuke Uchiha?" Neji asked tentatively, knowing that he was treading on extremely thin ice by just saying the name outloud, seeing as how the blond nearly lost himself and broke down completely as soon as he had forced the man's first name out.

At the slight nod of the blond head, and the swift vertical movement of sunny golden hair, Neji could not help the feral and untamed, bordering almost on devilish and downright evil grin that blossomed on his calm and collected pale face.

Oh he was going to have so much fun, Neji could practically _feel_ it enveloping him and drowning him.

"P-please, _please_, he-help m-me for-_forget_, j-just for t-tonight. I-I d-don't w-_want_ to th-think about _h-h-him _any-anymore," the blond sniffled out, and the tan lids slowly opened to reveal determined yet pained cerulean blue orbs. The blond's grip on Neji's hands did not relent, ostensibly not wanting to let go, let go of the one person whom he thought that could change things; change the way he was feeling, change his thoughts, change _everything_, even for just a night.

Neji rejoiced inwardly, but his mask did not falter the slightest. With a determined goal in his head, the black, wicked fire that was licking at his insides, searching desperately for an outlet to escape, to wrap its vessel in all of its sinful glory.

Neji was given his golden opportunity on a fucking _golden_ platter, why would he turn it down?

"O-Okay, I-I'll help you, I'll make you forget."

And with that, Neji took the sobbing blond in his arms and dragged him out of the club, careful to not lose control and to seem overly-eager, as he made his way through the throng of perspiration-coated, alcohol-induce bodies that were throbbing and pulsating all over the dance floor, towards the main exit.

Towards the start of an exciting and sadistically-cruel journey.

Oh, Neji had fruitfully completed his first mission, and now he was on his second one, one which he had no intention of failing.

_Breaking Sasuke Uchiha, start!_

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hey guys! Sorry for not updating in a while, was pretty busy with school and all that, and not to mention completely and utterly depressed with the final chapter of Naruto, signifying the official end of the anime and manga that is basically my whole entire _life. _However, as i have said before, this does not mean that we should stop writing FanFics people! We must continue to live on and live the Naruto Legacy, because this is not the end, but a brand new start! We will continue to bring Naruto to greater heights, via FanFiction! Naruto will still have the greatest number of communities and fanfiction here on !

C'mon guys! #NarutoFandomUnite! Don't give up now! Naruto didn't, so should we! :D

DO IT FOR SASUNARU!

Please do drop a review to tell me whether you have enjoyed this chapter or not, and if you didn't, please do enlighten me on how i can improve myself! :)

Thank you,  
ByakuSharingan

P.S.: I just realized exactly how OOC these guys are acting omg. I'm so sorry people! Just give me one last chapter for them to be OOC (which is the next chapter), and i promise they won't be as OOC anymore! I am really really sorry!


	8. Accusations & the Aftermath

**You Hold My Heart In Your Paws**

_Chapter 8: Accusations &amp; the Aftermath_

**Disclaimer**: No, I do not own Naruto.

* * *

Blond eyebrows crunched together, wrinkling the baby soft skin between them. It was soon followed by the fluttering of blond lashes against bandaged, tanned skin, and the eyelids soon slid open, revealing hazy and unfocused baby blue irises.

For a moment, Naruto had no idea where he was. His mind was blank, and the sudden onslaught of bright light and wave after wave of disinfectant alcohol filling his nostrils with every single inhalation were of no help. The feeling of waking up to the same scene brought about a sense of déjà vu, and Naruto could suddenly vividly recall waking up to the exact same scene, which reminded him so much of a hospital, after getting knocked up and thrown about by the jocks back in high school, sporting many bruises and wounds and fractures, many of which took too long a time to heal before he was sent back to the same location, in an even worse condition than before.

_Wait… Hospital?_

"Finally awake?" The smooth baritone sent jolts of fear up Naruto's spine, and Naruto was immediately confronted with a whole barrage of painful memories, all of them consisting of him getting ruthlessly punched and kicked and the sound of skin ripping and bones breaking was so loud, so deafeningly loud, sounds that he was much too, too familiar with, and sounds that brought back a whole barrage of memories, of which Naruto thought were locked back into the deep recesses of his mind, ones which Naruto had never ever wanted resurfacing again, that Naruto screamed.

Instantaneously, a large, calloused hand slammed right on top of the full, pink lips, effectively cutting off the scream that was about to let loose, the scream that expressed its owner's immense fear and desperation.

Pale, lavender eyes ignited and bright with suppressed ice-cold fury bore right into petrified and fear-stricken, baby blues. The big hand clamped over the full, peachy-pink lips tightened its hold as Hyuuga Neji leant even more forwards, drawing and bringing their faces even more close together than before. With every single inch that Neji brought his aristocratically perfect face (_although not nearly as perfect as Sasuke's_, thought Naruto) nearer and nearer to the whiskered one below him, Neji watched in amusement as the irises of the baby blues dilated even more and more, in an obvious sign of fear, and smirked in satisfaction at the realization that the blond's eyes were watering, from the increasing shine of those jewelled orbs.

"Scared?" The husky whisper that left thin and pale pink lips would be considered sex and sin incarnate on its own, was viewed only as menacing and ice-cold by the bright-haired patient laying on the bed. The tone was meant to be playful, but Naruto could sense the underlying threat and promises of more painful memories being made, and more nightmares to be experienced if Naruto did not play along to the bulky, muscular man before him.

Neji could kill him, and he knew it.

Not bothering to hide his malicious smirk which showcased his joy, Neji brought his other rough hand towards the long, skinny thighs of the blond but kept his gaze locked onto the terrified sky blue orbs of the blond.

He knew every single curve of the whore, after all. Sleeping with someone nearly every day for the past six months would have guaranteed that.

Grasping the thin, tanned thighs, Neji inwardly marvelled at the sheer litheness of the blond on the bed, seeing as how he could easily wrap his entire hand around each thigh. He knew that Naruto was small, but he hadn't exactly had the time to sit down and realize just _how_ small he was.

Clenching his thick fingers around the supple and soft flesh, Neji leaned even closer to Naruto and rested his chin atop the soft, small shoulder of the blond, inhaling the sweet, fruity and feminine smell of the Uzumaki. Neji could also feel the slight tremors racing through the petite frame, and the aura of fear and terror emanating from the blond was so thick it was nearly palpable.

"How unfortunate to have been caught in the crossfire of a gang fight, right, Naruto?" The way his own name rolled out of Neji's tongue might seem so filled with pity and sympathy, but Naruto could clearly identify the thinly veiled threat if Naruto were to not play along to the pathetic game. However, he clearly valued his life more than his pride.

He didn't want to risk even further injury to his leg and neck.

Forcing his head to cock in a sign of acknowledgment, Naruto trembled in earnest fear as he felt the slight rumble of Neji's chest, immediately before a low, sinister chuckle escaped the confines of his pale throat. That same malicious chuckle sent waves of pure fear reverberating throughout the expanse of the tan, lithe body nearly enveloped on the bed by the monstrous stature of the man above him.

Mustering up and putting together every single bit and scrap of courage within his reach, Naruto spoke, in a voice nearly as broken and vulnerable as dead spring.

"P-p-please… I won't s-say a-a-_anything_." A barely audible whisper left those bright pink, fear-chapped lips. As soon as those words had landed on pale ears barely two inches away, Naruto felt the first beginnings of a smirk on his shoulder, and he barely held back a flinch.

"I'm not expecting you to. Unless, of course, you want to meet your fate again," A dark, malevolent laugh rumbled out through thin, pale-pink lips and Naruto just barely, _barely_ held back a helpless, albeit relieved whimper.

A rough squeeze to his thigh and suddenly Naruto found his head yanked back so roughly, bright and soft blond locks held in such a sturdy and robust grip that had him gasping in pain almost instantaneously. Flailing his weak, diminutive hands and fingers around and about the thick, muscular wrist that was the bane of his pain then, Naruto could feel the start of tears prickling about his eyes, and he could not help but let out a soft, pathetic sob.

"N-N-Neji, I-I pr-pro-promise…" His voice grew softer and softer as the relentless grip on his hair grew stronger and stronger with each word that left his throat.

Soft yet firm footsteps could be heard from outside the door, and the range of hushed, monotonous voices that accompanied it grew louder and louder with each clacking of heels against the white tiled floor.

Immediately, the grip on both his hair and thigh vanished completely, and Naruto laid stock-still for a muddled moment due to the confusion of being absolutely ridded of the weight of Neji pressing hard on his body.

Neji casted a quick glance over his shoulder, a venomous yet precautious glare directed at the wooden door leading into the last room on the floor. As soon as the soft padding of feet against the tiled flooring diminished into the night, Neji turned back to face the petrified blonde on the bed, drinking in the sight of the baby blue eyes worryingly dilated in pure, absolute fear, the insistent shaking of the petite frame, and the way a trembling lip was resolutely held back behind a row of pristine, white teeth.

"You're beautiful when you're scared out of your wits," Neji commented in a tone meant to be playful and joking, but came out as nothing less than derogatory and malicious. With the slight upturn of his pale, pink lips, Neji casually leant against the wall opposite of the cowering Uzumaki, knowing that anytime soon the doctor would pop in and probably question him even further, and Neji could not afford that. The Hyuuga name was only so big after all, and who knows what befall upon the Hyuuga name as soon as even the slightest hint as to what he had done to the unfaithful blonde shaking in earnest fear on the bed got out to the public.

Neji couldn't afford tarnishing his and his family's reputation over someone who didn't even mean anything to the world.

The Hyuuga name didn't deserve that.

"I've been transferred over to another branch of the company in a foreign country. You won't see me again, and don't bother trying." Neji glanced back up at Naruto, watching as his expression morphed from utter apprehension and terror, to confusion and a slight hint of relief.

In a flash, Neji had his slender fingers wrapped around the delicate, tan neck, squeezing tightly and knowing, guaranteeing, that the blonde had his windpipe blocked and that he was definitely being strangled. A small whimper left the lips of the fear-stricken blonde as a single, pearly tear fell down from his bruised, gauze-covered eye, and he brought up his weak, small hands to claw desperately at the hand wrapped tightly around his neck.

"You know, Naruto, for once in my life I can actually say that I am happy for that ex-boyfriend Uchiha of yours. At least he doesn't have to waste his time on a slut who whores himself to his own boyfriend's most hated person just because he wasn't showered in enough love and affection from him."

Naruto's mind went blank and the ringing in his ears escalated exponentially, reaching decibels he didn't thought he could ever reach, as he watched the pale, stoic man shove him back down on the bed and silently leave the room. Neji's words rang loudly in his ears, even louder than the insistent ringing echoing about in his ears.

He was disgusting, wasn't he?

_A slut who whores himself to his own boyfriend's most hated person just because he wasn't showered in enough love and affection from him._

Why had he agreed to this? Why had he pursued this relationship he had on the side with Neji when he had Sasuke?

_He wasn't showered in enough love and affection from him._

Naruto knew the answer to the questions racing about in his mind, and it all revolved around the fact that he felt that he wasn't being paid enough attention to. Sasuke had nearly neglected Naruto completely during the past six months; always going to work off early in the morning and returning late at night, sometimes even never coming back home.

A montage of eerily silent houses, lonely beds and a near non-existent relationship played about in his mind, and how much pain he had been in, during that lonesome six months. Sasuke had set aside Naruto and had focused more on his work than anything else. Naruto was shoved down on his priority list, all in favour of his work, his company, his reputation, his _father_.

_But Sasuke still cared. He called you daily. He apologized to you every day before he went off to work and when he came back. You heard it, you weren't asleep then. You heard his sincerity. You heard his pain._

_He still loved you._

"P-please… S-s-stop…"

_He still tried to be there for you, Naruto. He tried his hardest to give you everything that he could, when he knew he couldn't give you his physical presence. He showed, in every way he could, that he loved you, and what did you do?_

"P-p-please… I'm b-b-begging y-you… I c-can't—"

_You cheated on him. _

"STOP!"

_For six months._

"PLEASE, LEAVE ME ALONE!"

_Straight._

"I-I-I-I'm s-s-sorry!"

_Every._

_Single._

_Night._

Faint, dark spots could be seen in his peripheral vision, and it soon overtook and shadowed his entire sight, and before he knew it, Naruto fell back into a fitful sleep. One that he wished he would never awaken from, and thus, never face the harsh reality of whatever he had done.

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hi guys, I do apologize for the abrupt and rather 'unspoken' Hiatus that this story went on, but i'm finally back and this story has finally been updated! I edited a little bit of some of the previous chapters (namely Chapter 2, and going onto editing and updating Chapter 3), but not much changes has occurred and nothing that will greatly impact the story!

Please do drop me a review if you enjoyed my story and how you would like to see things progressing from here on out, as well as your feelings about the characters: Reviews give me motivation! :) And if you didn't enjoy my story, please do drop a review about telling me things that i could improve on as well as things you think could have been brought about in a different manner.

No flames, please! :)

I will try to update at the start of every month (I know that it's a long stretch, but i've got my reasons!), because my major exams are coming up in two months' time and I haven't really got the time to spare to sit down and update! :( I'll update more frequently as soon as my exams are over, though! :)

Thank you,

ByakuSharingan. :)


	9. Reveals & Relief

**You Hold My Heart in Your Paws**

_Chapter 9: Reveals &amp; Relief_

**Disclaimer: **No, I do not own Naruto.

* * *

"So you're telling me that Neji Hyuuga, nephew of one of the greatest business tycoons in the world, brought in a blonde boy named Uzumaki Naruto, who was bearing multiple injuries to his face, torso and limbs, because he was caught in a gang fight, involuntarily?" Tsunade questioned the nurse, incredulously. Shizune, who had the black clipboard with the crisp, white piece of paper detailing the personal as well as medical information typed out about the above-mentioned blonde held securely in her arms, simply shook her head, unsurely. Both nurse and doctor were equally as perplexed as the other, both not quite trusting the story behind the Uzumaki's injuries, which was rattled on by a certain Hyuuga.

"And how did this Hyuuga find the Uzumaki?" Tsunade questioned through gritted teeth. Something was not quite adding up.

"Well… Mr. Hyuuga said that he found Mr. Uzumaki in an alleyway not too far off from Mr. Uzumaki's apartment block. He panicked at first and immediately brought him up to his apartment, and he had access to Mr. Uzumaki's apartment because he was given the spare key. He then called up the hospital and you know the story from there." Shizune scratched her head; the story that Neji had told her seemed plausible, but there was just one thing…

"Didn't anyone notice a gang fight was going on in an alleyway near apartment buildings at 5.30 in the afternoon?" Tsunade questioned, aggravated. She had a hunch that the Hyuuga was the one responsible for the state that this Naruto Uzumaki was in, but she didn't have enough evidence.

Who knows just how sly and manipulative those rich assholes could be.

"…Apparently not…" The weak whisper leaving the anxious nurse had Tsunade cursing, and immediately picked up her pace to enter the room of her next, and second patient.

"Well, what about the other guy? Uchiha Sasuke."

Shizune immediately flipped the page over, and her experienced, trained eyes began racing over the page and reciting whatever was on it to the skilled and the best doctor in the country. "Sasuke Uchiha, aged 22, drove off the edge of 3rd Highway…" the quieting of Shizune's monotonous voice had Tsunade bemused. Quirking a delicate, honey-coloured eyebrow up at her nurse, she watched, getting more confused by the minute as Shizune calmly stopped her, eyes still flying over the page detailing every little bit of information regarding the youngest Uchiha.

Tsunade could only listen, stock-still and slack-jawed, as Shizune whispered out the rest of whatever the page held.

"…Has his family been informed?" Tsunade asked, voice shaking feebly and anxious.

Shizune finally glanced up and locked gazes with the doctor. "No." Shizune replied, equally anxious and sorrowful.

"…Fuck…"

"_Traumatic brain injury, suspected long-term amnesia, paraplegic. 20% chance survival, at best."_

* * *

Tsunade watched as the two stoic, pale men, who were one of the most sought after men in the world, processed the information in their minds. She watched, transfixed, as a shy sliver of emotion_, shock, pain, hopelessness_, flitted through Fugaku's and Itachi's eyes, how the corners of their lips strained, fighting against the downturn of their lips, and how their slender, long fingers clenched together, white-knuckled, and shoved deep into the pockets of their suit pants.

"_Tsunade! He's awake!" Itachi whispered out to the doctor, who was analysing the various reports on her patient's vitals. Immediately the honey-brown eyes shot wide open and flickered over to where the youngest Uchiha was slowly waking up; coal-onyx eyes blinking rapidly, trying hard to remove the haze of complete confusion away._

_Tsunade immediately switched over to her professional, doctor mode and began rattling a series of questions, but she didn't get far down her list._

"_Sasuke, do you know who they are?" Tsunade asked, hesitantly, as she pointed over to where the two, stoic men were watching the interaction between doctor and patient. One who would have just been passing by the room would have thought that the two aristocrats were nonchalant about the entire situation, but only Tsunade, an experienced doctor who could see behind the deepest of facades, saw the brief glimmer of happiness and hope flicker in the two men's eyes._

_Sasuke slowly brought his gaze back down to where the two men were, and slowly, ever so slowly, cocked his head to the side. His almond shaped, coal-coloured eyed squinted hard, as he gazed at the two men, and everyone in the room knew that he was trying his hardest to rummage through the mess of memories in his frazzled and messy mind, to find out who exactly these men were. _

_As Sasuke's lips parted to finally answer Tsunade's question, everyone in the room stood stock-still, with bated breath._

"_No, I don't."_

* * *

"…I'm sorry, Mr. Uchiha…" Tsunade whispered out weakly, wanting desperately to change the situation, wanting desperately to be able to fix the youngest Uchiha, a _far too young_ man, who was all wrapped up, head to toe, in wire gauzes and bandages, lying, as good as gone, in the room behind them.

This was what she hated about her job.

She joined the medical industry simply because she wanted, knew, that modern medicine would be able to fix anyone and everyone up, if they were not at their best of health. She became a doctor because she wanted to be able to save the lives of people, save the lives of their family and friends, and give hope to others; that they can live to see another day, that they can live to watch their children and grandchildren grow and get old, to be able to catch life milestones and not miss anything.

But modern medicine isn't perfect, after all. There will always be those few that, no matter how much she tries, will never be saved.

Uchiha Sasuke was one of them.

The son and heir of the globally renowned Uchiha Inc. was lying on the bed, possibly not able to walk anymore, and had forgotten everything that he had ever learned, forgotten every memory, and even forgotten his own family.

And due to the un-stabilised and constantly fluctuating vitals of the Uchiha, Sasuke only had a 20% chance of survival. At best.

He was only 22.

* * *

"Mr. Uchiha, these were the items that were found in the car of your son." Tsunade muttered, holding out the black wallet and black smartphone to the sullen-looking patriarch of the Uchiha. Fugaku turned blank, solemn eyes towards the sorrow-filled voice of Tsunade, and accepted the belongings of his son silently, his son who was still heavily drugged from both the long rest as well as the medication, and was also preoccupied with the thorough check the nurse was giving him, acknowledging the doctor and giving her the cue to leave.

When the doctor had shown no signs of leaving, Fugaku looked up once again, a confused frown drawing wrinkled lines on his face which made him appear much older than the 45 that he was. He watched, still rather bemused, as the famous doctor dug around for a little while in the pocket of her white coat, seemingly searching hard for something.

The necklace along with the half-heart pendant that hung limply and dangled from the palm of her hand caught the interest of one Itachi Uchiha.

He had seen it somewhere before.

"This is Sasuke's?" The unbelieving whispered question from Fugaku echoed about in the dead-silent room. Fugaku looked up to Tsunade from this rather cheesy necklace, who simply stared back at him with raised eyebrows and a shrug of her shoulders. Fugaku then turned his gaze towards his oldest, and watched as Itachi contemplated.

Sasuke never was into jewellery or anything of that sort; he found such materialistic items a waste of money. So why did Sasuke even have this necklace on in the first place?

"…Where's Naruto?" the quiet question broke through the rather uncomfortable (in Tsunade's opinion, but the Uchihas were used to such silences) silence, and both her and Fugaku's interest got piqued.

"Naruto? Sasuke's lover?" Fugaku questioned, just as quietly (they didn't want Sasuke to overhear them). He knew of Sasuke's relationship with the blonde; he did add some colour to the dull lives of the Uchihas every time he visited him in the mansion. However, it had been a while since he last saw the cheerful blonde, the one person who was able to make his youngest smile and laugh.

"Yes, father. I remember Naruto showcasing his own mirror-version of this necklace to me some time last year. Apparently, he got them as a couple gift for both him and Sasuke on their anniversary last year." Itachi whispered, quiet enough such that only Tsunade and Fugaku could hear, and Fugaku nodded in understanding, turning to face Tsunade and went to retrieve the necklace from her.

"…Excuse me, sir, but are you talking about someone named Naruto Uzumaki?" Tsunade couldn't hold down her question anymore. After blurting out her question and receiving confused yet shocked faces at her question, both men gave a slight nod, one so discreet that Tsunade thought that she had imagined it in the first place. After further description of the blonde in subject, as well as further confirming nods from both parties, Tsunade began to further explain herself.

"Naruto Uzumaki was sent in just 15 minutes prior to when Sasuke Uchiha was rushed to the hospital. He is in the ICU as we speak." Both Itachi's and Fugaku's eyes widened in shock before casting a glance to each other.

What could have happened to the youngest Uchiha's beloved blonde?

"Please take me to him. He does not have anyone else, only us." Itachi spoke-whispered—demanded of the doctor and Tsunade simply nodded. She had scanned the particulars of the Uzumaki and realized, with a forlorn and heavy heart, that Naruto Uzumaki had no family members within the vicinity; he was an orphan with no known relatives.

Itachi quickly casted a meaningful glance to his father, telling him with his eyes to _watch over his younger brother_ and to _inform him immediately as soon as Sasuke were to wake up from his _

Fugaku simply nodded and watched, with blank eyes, as the doctor and his eldest son left his youngest and him alone.

* * *

"Excuse me, Dr. Tsunade, but may I enquire about the reason as to why Naruto was brought into the hospital, and his current status?" Itachi watched, a hint of curiosity in his eyes as Tsunade walked ahead, leading them to the room which Naruto was held in.

Tsunade slowed down her steps, seemingly contemplating as to whether or not she could indulge the Uchiha, one who had no familial ties to the blonde patient whatsoever, private information about her patient.

"As I have stated before, we Uchihas are the only ones who can pass for family for Naruto." Tsunade sighed inaudibly as she was cornered and had no reason not to withhold such vital and rather confidential information from someone who could be the Uzumaki's next-of-kin.

"Uzumaki was sent in thoroughly beaten up. His left eye was bruised, to the point where it was bleeding internally. His nose was broken, completely detached. His jaw was bruised, but from the report, it wasn't that bad. He'll have difficulty breathing and talking for a while, but it won't be as tough."

_It won't be as tough as not being able to walk for the rest of your life. _

Itachi understood and caught up with the unspoken words that he knew Tsunade had buried in her throat, but out of respect and consideration, and simply squashed them down and zipped her lips. Itachi continued to watch the doctor, robotically sympathetic, as Tsunade continued filling him in on his brother's lover's condition.

"He suffered a few broken ribs too, and will probably be limping for a while. He got beat up pretty badly, but he should be able to make it through." Tsunade finally ended her rather brief, yet detailed to an extent, speech regarding her patient's particulars, and watched the Uchiha as we sullenly nodded, finally processing and understanding whatever the doctor had robotically recited.

"… I apologise… For everything that has happened to your family…" Tsunade whispered out, watching with sympathetic and depressed eyes as she finally took in the slight changes in the Uchiha's demeanour. Slightly drooping shoulders, shoulders looking like they have been the victim of the settling of a huge block of weight, slight, frown lines lining the edges of his mouth, and most of all, striking, onyx eyes that seemed to have their life sucked right out of them.

Tsunade was an experienced doctor. She knew the signs.

"…It's…not your fault, Doctor. We'll…get through it." _Somehow_. The unspoken word rang around them, enveloping them at a deafening volume. Itachi flicked his gaze down from the warm, understanding, yet not quite, eyes of the doctor down to the gleamingly polished white tiled flooring of the ICU hallway.

It was her cue to continue walking on ahead, and lead them to where Uzumaki Naruto was held in.

* * *

"I'm sorry…" "Please…Stop…" "Don't leave me." Faint whispers or broken, incomplete pleas sounded out, so pitifully, from the room hosting the Uzumaki. Immediately Tsunade's senses were on to the maximum, and an underlying thin veil of anxiety as well as alarm forced her walking feet to sprint into a run.

Nearly ripping the room door off of its hinges, Tsunade could only watch, eyes wide, as the petite, feminine blonde curled in on himself as he continued sobbing, unperturbed by the slamming of the door. He continued on with the hushes whispers and pleas, which seem to be intensifying every moment, in their despair, sorrow, pain, and hurt.

"I'm sorry…! I didn't…" The escalation in volume at which the pitiful cries were let out broke Tsunade out of her reverie, and she immediately barged into the room, instinctively raking her eyes over the various machinery and processing quickly what the numbers flashing repeatedly on the various monitors were representing; the blonde was physically all right, but mentally and possibly emotionally not so.

The sorrow-filled whimpers drew back her attention towards the patient lying foetus-like on the bed, and Tsunade quickly rushed over and settled down right next to the blonde. Her attempts at waking the blonde up were rendered futile, and only seemed to trigger even more of the sobs and near-shouts.

"Naruto? Uzum—"

"I didn't mean to do it! Please, don't go! Please!"

"Sir, Naruto, it's ju—"

"Don't leave me, please! I—I'm sorry!"

Tears were quickly cascading down the face of the petite blonde, tear tracks staining the scarred cheeks as the blonde huddled into himself, shoulders quaking and body convulsing with his sobs and cries.

"Naruto!" The sudden scream erupting from the anxious yet level-headed doctor seemed to do just the trick. Baby blue eyes shot wide open, a thin film of crystal tears causing the light to reflect off of the mesmerizing orbs, making them appear to be sparking. The pouty lips formed into a small 'o', and the blonde stared right back at the blonde woman, stock-still.

The warm, pitiful gaze that locked itself with Naruto's own baby blue had the small-framed blonde bursting into tears again; broken sobs escaping his heavily bruised and thoroughly bitten lips. Small, tanned hands clutched desperately onto the front of Tsunade's white coat, as the golden haloed head pressed itself against the clenched, tiny fists.

Tsunade could only stare back at the depressed blonde, and wrapped her arms around the small, rounded shoulders of her patient.

_Who knows what it's like to be in his position? To have a dream of someone leaving you, when you don't have anyone? To be left alone?_

Tsunade's grip around the blonde boy increased as the sobs grew even harder in intensity and ferocity, as the wetness against the front of her white coat grew damper.

Soon, the broken cries and pleas morphed into something decipherable, and Tsunade simply leant a listening ear to what the blonde was saying, even though he was involuntarily doing it.

"Please, help me… I-I haven't got _a-a-anyone_, and I-I'm _a-a-a-alone_. I-I d-don't k-k-know w-what to do, I-I'm s-so_ l-l-lost_…" Tsuande rested her head against the soft, vanilla-scented gold, knowing on instinct (call it a woman's natural-born mother's instinct), but she just knew that the blonde, the innocent and pitiful blonde, wanted—needed some form of physical contact, some sort of physical reassurance.

"I-I d-didn't m-mean to d-do i-i-t, I-I s-swear… I-I d-don't k-know w-w-hy I went a-along with i-it…" The Uzumaki's cries were quieting down, but Tsunade continued holding the boy close, knowing that he wasn't done, that he still had more things to say, and if the tightening of the grip the boy had on her coat wasn't an indication for her to stay, then she doesn't know what else is.

"I-I… S-S-Sas—Sasuke w-was p-per-perfect, h-he d-did e-ev-everything for m-me. H-he was a-always there, n-no matter w-what. H-he g-gave m-me e-everything t-that h-he could. _H-h-he l-l-l-loved m-me_…!

"A-And I-I b-b-_betrayed_ h-h-him, the m-most _perfect_ b-boy-boyfriend a-anyone, _anyone_ c-could ever ask for."

Tsunade began to softly stroke the back of the blonde head, trying her best to calm down the sobbing boy who had already managed to seize her heart. "What did you do?" Tsunade enquired softly, when it became apparent that the blonde wasn't continuing. The blonde wasn't done, and Tsunade knew it.

"I-I-I c-c-ch-cheated! I-I ch-cheated o-on h-h-him! I c-cheated o-on h-him w-with N-N-Neji!" The scream erupted from the blonde was followed immediately by a barrage of tears and gasping, panting sobs. The wetness on Tsunade's coat steadily grew damper, but at a much faster rate, and the force at which the blonde in her arms was sobbing was alarming, but Tsunade knew that she wouldn't—couldn't stop him even if she tried; the poor blonde clearly had been bottling this up for quite some time now, and had to get it out of his pretty little mind and off of his small chest before it engulfs him whole.

As the little blonde in her arms fought his hardest to cry all his pain, sorrow and hurt out, Tsunade's mind quickly worked on putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

…Knowing Sasuke's condition and state that he was in… It was far worse than the little blonde in her arms.

To cheat on a billionaire, "celebrity" with his own other billionaire rival when you yourself had no one else but him? Moreover, you were the cause of your own boyfriend's, and the only one you had in the world, accident, from which he now only has a 20% chance of survival, and is lying unconscious on a bed, paralyzed from the waist down?

…Tsunade couldn't bring herself to feel sorry for blonde anymore, not when Sasuke Uchiha was in a far worse state than he was in.

* * *

As Naruto slowly began to quell his sobs and regain consciousness of his surroundings, he slowly, ever so slowly, began to pull himself back from the cocoon of arms that were surrounding him; his mind still foggy and hazy, his eyes still glassy and dazed, still not quite aware of the entire situation.

His foggy, red-rimmed and swollen eyes glanced around the room…

…And landed on the tall, looming stature of one Itachi Uchiha, leaning against the doorframe of the entrance to his room.

And he watched, eyes wide and mouth agape, as the Uchiha gave him one last, ice-cold glance, and swiftly walked out of the room, towards the hallway.

* * *

Itachi quickly made his way back to where his brother was resting in, and he came across the sight of his father reciting everything that he knew about their family to Sasuke.

It was painful for Itachi to realize that the one person, who he had shared many memories with when they were younger, had completely forgotten about him. It had been just as tough, if not even tougher, for Fugaku, because Itachi recalled just how much his father was beating himself up, internally. Ever since Sasuke declared that he had forgotten then, and had unintentionally proven Tsunade's theory right, Fugaku's eyes had dimmed in the self-derogatory way.

Itachi couldn't find it in himself to reassure his father.

He blamed him as well as himself too.

However, the trip to the Uzumaki's room had changed all of his options as to who the blame should have been on.

He knew that it was Sasuke's and Naruto's second year anniversary; he had it noted down in his smartphone's calendar. He knew how Sasuke was the gentleman who would go over to his date's house and pick them up. He knew what transpired when Sasuke went over to Naruto's house. He knew that Sasuke was one who would let loose his emotions when the situation called for it.

And watching the presumed love of your life fucking your most hated person on the bed where you had done the exact same thing before would have been enough for Sasuke to let his emotions run rampant, wouldn't it?

And that was how Sasuke had ended off driving over a cliff on 3rd.

Politely interrupting the conversation (more one-sided than not) between his father and youngest brother, Itachi called out for Fugaku, and the two men left the youngest Uchiha alone with a polite 'Excuse us.'

Before Fugaku could start questioning his eldest, Itachi explained everything that had happened ever since he paid a visit to the Uzumaki, as well as his theory (which the elder men knew was spot on).

By the time Itachi was done, it was not surprising that Fugaku was seething, boiling in pure, unadulterated anger.

"Father, I believe that it is in everyone's interest that Sasuke is transferred over to the Private Konoha hospital. I would not want the Uzumaki to come into contact with my brother ever again. I believe that we can agree on that." Itachi murmured, quiet voice thick with suppressed anger and despair.

Fugaku gave a curt nod as he shoved his clenched fists into the pockets of his suit, and tried in vain to quell the harsh gritting of his teeth, which had caused his jugular vein to protrude from his skin.

"...We'll have to have the permission of Tsunade first. Sasuke's still unstable, and his conditions constantly fluctuates. It'll take some time before we can have him transferred over." Fugaku whispered out, rather reluctantly. Itachi quietly agreed with his father, and told him that he would talk with Tsunade as soon as possible, after she had dealt with the Uzumaki.

The Uzumaki who betrayed their loyal, faithful brother and son, in the worst possible way imaginable, and whose utterly unreasonable actions resulted in dire consequences.

As soon as Itachi had settled everything with his father, he went back into Sasuke's room, the question that he had to ask Sasuke right at the tip of his tongue.

As soon as Itachi held the attention of his brother, he parted his lips and asked the one question that he had been dying to ask ever since making his way over to Sasuke's room.

"Do you know anyone named Naruto Uzumaki?"

The slow, confused shake of the head was enough to bring relief to Itachi.

"No, brother, I don't."

* * *

**Author's Note: **Hey guys! I'm posting this chapter up early because i won't be able to post anything onto FanFiction because of my exams. :( I'll only be able to start working on the rest of the chapters (at most, maybe 4?) after I've taken my last examination... which is on the 13th of November 2015. I AM SO SORRY. Please do bear with me because i won't be posting anything on FanFiction for the next three months or so, but i promise that as soon as my examinations are over, i'll feed all of you with weekly updates! :)

Hopefully that will make up for my three-month absence (notification in advanced).

Also, thank you to all my faithful reviewers, you guys never fail to brighten up my day and push me to work even harder and give you guys the latest chapter ASAP! Thank you to Shane, Chiko92, Anonymous (a.k.a. Guest), ShadeofBlue as well as cary99 for sharing your feelings in regards to the previous chapter, it never fails to bring a smile onto my face. :)

Hopefully this chapter is enough for you guys, i tried my best! Please do drop a review to tell me your thoughts as well as feelings regarding this chapter, and how you would like to see things progress from here on now. Also, do drop me a review telling me how i can improve on my writing as well as my story if you didn't like it. It would help me very much, and i'll be grateful to receive constructive criticism from you guys!

Thank you, I love you. :)

ByakuSharingan

EDIT: I APOLOGIZE, SHADEOFBLUE, I WROTE THIS WHEN I WAS REALLY TIRED AND I DIDN'T THOROUGHLY EDIT/"CLEAN" THE STORY (I wanted to write it that way, initially, but i changed at the end). Hopefully now it's a little more better and clearer!


	10. Mistakes & Memories

**You Hold My Heart In Your Paws**

_Chapter 10: Mistakes &amp; Memories_

**Disclaimer: Standard disclaimers apply**

* * *

There was complete silence in the room, and the scene that just transpired right in front of his eyes was still being processed in the blonde's emotionally-hazed mind. However, the sound of Itachi's expertly polished dress shoes pit-patting on the tiled, gleaming floor soon enough registered itself and sent Naruto thrashing in Tsunade's hold.

"N-No! Wait! P-P-Please, Itachi! _P-Please_! Don't g-go! I-I, I can explain!" sobs once again broke free from the bright pink lips, as his small frame convulsed into itself, trying desperately to hold onto any bits of dignity and courage and _drive_ to not break down and still work on fixing his broken relationship; to not give up on his true love. The lithe frame twisted itself around the warm, soft body holding him in place, but Tsunade's arms simply tightened and locked themselves around the waist and shoulders of the blonde; doing her level best to keep him with her and prevent him from running out.

"_Itachi!_" The broken scream was lost into the empty hallway, and the blonde brought his clenched, tiny fists against the chest of the woman, burying his head against them and sobbing his heart out.

The broken whispers and hiccups of 'Sasuke's and 'I'm sorry's along with other words of resentment and apologies were uttered against the robust chest of the doctor, and Tsunade had never felt her heart clench as painfully as it did then. The blonde's expression of pure, unadulterated fear, pain, and outright sorrow was clearly written all over it, when he caught a glimpse of the elder heir of the Uchiha.

She pitied him.

"…Just let him go, Naruto," Tsunade's forlorn whisper reached the blonde's ears before it was followed immediately after with a much louder, much more pained cry and a whole new barrage of tears, wetting the front of her white coat. The hiccups and sobs and whimpers were growing more ferocious, more dangerous, and Tsunade knew that she had to calm the Uzumaki down before he gets subjected to either a panic attack or a blackout.

She calmly and soothingly ran her hand up and down the little one's back, trying in vain to get him to calm down and _breathe_.

"Naruto, please calm down. For yourself, I need you to breathe." Tsnade whispered, in a voice that was as motherly and friendly as she could muster, yet hinted with the underlying tone of a warning. The blonde, by the looks of it, was not aware of whatever that the older woman had said, and his sobs had still not toned down in intensity.

Tsunade simply continued to rub her hand in circles around his back, and the sobs and eventually quietened down, to the point where Tsunade had the fleeting thought that her patient had finally succumbed to exhaustion and had blacked out. However, the one faint whisper, uttered so softly and delicately that Tsunade had to think twice as to whether or not it was there in the first place, broke through the silence of the ward, and it was filled with so much pain and desperation, that Tsunade could only hold the boy tighter to her chest, in pain and pity for him.

"I can't, doctor… I can't let g-go… S-S-Sas…He's a-_always_ been t-there for me…He's a p-p-_part_ of me… and… to l-l-let g-go, l-let go of h-_him_…? I c-can't, I c-c-_can't_. _I c_-_cannot do that_." Naruto clutched desperately onto the drenched, white lab coat of Tsunade, as a fresh onslaught of tears fought its way to his eyes, brimming on the swollen, bottom lid.

The thought of letting go of Sasuke was enough to bring a physical pain to his chest.

Tsunade could only sigh inwardly, and continued rubbing her hand on Naruto's back, trying to express her sympathy and pity for the blonde-haired boy.

"…It's not impossible, Naruto… It's just really, really difficult."

* * *

The sound of the static from the television was the only sound ringing and echoing about in the eerily silent hospital ward of one Sasuke Uchiha. With another press of thumb and click, the high-pitched laughter of the sponge on the screen was abruptly cut short, only to be replaced by the droning of the midnight newscasters'.

Sighing inwardly to himself, Sasuke simply pressed onto the red button at the top of the remote, effectively shutting off the television; watching how the aged television's colourful image zoned out into darkness. Glacing towards the right side of his bed, his onyx eyes adjusted themselves to properly make out the blaring, glowing red numbers flashing on the digital clock; 2.41 A.M.

Leaning back against the bed, Sasuke simply glanced about the room, thoughts circling about his mind; so much so that he felt mentally drained.

_So…I'm the son of one of the business tycoons, and am going to take over the company soon. I guess I could live with that. I've also got a brother, who is five years my senior, and a mother who had passed on. But…I can't help but feel that I'm missing something… something rather im—_

Sasuke's train of thought was abruptly cut short as the faint trinkles of sobs and shuffling of feet rang about in his room. The sobs and whimpers were growing louder and louder, and when Sasuke strained his ears, he heard faint, yet broken whispers of apologies and…his _name_?

Mustering his courage, and bracing one, stiff finger over the emergency button (to alert a nurse), Sasuke called out into the near-pitch blackness of his room, "Who's there?" Sasuke's posture was rigid and thoroughly stiff as he clenched his unoccupied hand around the covers of his bed. He cursed his legs for being in the paralysed state that they were in, and cursing his past, _stupid_ self for actually doing something_ stupid_ that resulted in him losing control of his legs completely.

_What the fuck did he do?_

A much harsher, more heavy and desperate sob tore through the serene, albeit eerie silence of the night, and Sasuke was once again brought back to the not-so discreet whimpers that were desperately being held in just behind the door to his ward.

"Who's there?" Sasuke once again repeated his question-turned-demand, although a little bit louder and much firmer. His demand caused a sudden stilling of the sobs, and he heard the faint, short shuffling of feet before the handle to his room was pushed downwards and in stepped in the one person that was tormenting him (in terms of mental preparation/fear).

…And for a moment, Sasuke Uchiha was caught breathless. The person, the girl, who stepped in was…_beautiful_. Bright, blonde hair that was cropped yet still seemed to retain its shine even in the dimmest of nights, a long slender neck that was adorned with something similar to a necklace, with a pendant or some sort, one that Sasuke couldn't exactly definitely make out due to the absence of sufficient light, small, rounded shoulders and sharp collarbones, and long, slender limbs holding onto the limp, green hospital dress for much-needed support just emphasised how petite and feminine she was.

Yeah, sure, she may be lacking some assets and that nearly half her face and her torso were bandaged, but she was beautiful all the same.

"I'm so sorry… I love you so much… I'm sorry, Sasuke…" faint whispers that were let out from the blonde's luscious looking, plump lips broke Sasuke out of his captivated daze, and he brought up his now confused gaze to lock onto her mesmerising, bright blue ones; cerulean blue eyes that seemed to glow in the dim night, emphasised by the thin sheet of salty tears veiling them.

"…Why are you apologising, and why are you saying that you love me?" Sasuke murmured, not catching on to what the blonde was saying. He was responded with the widening of bright blue eyes, and a choked gasp from the girl.

"I…I…S-Sasuke…W-we're l-l-_lovers_, r-remember? I-It was o-our t-t-_two y-year a-a-anniversary _yes-yesterday… P-Please, s-stop p-playing around, S-S-Sasuke! I-I'm _s-s-sorry…!"_ The rounded, small shoulders were once again hunching up, as a tiny, tanned hand that looked so babyishly soft went to clamp over the plump, swollen lips and the other enclosed around the pendant hanging around the necklace of the blonde girl.

The thin sliver of trepidation within Sasuke grew, and he stilled, looking quizzically and equally as suspiciously at the unknown blonde girl. His head was starting to hurt, and painful throbs accompanied them every time he stared hard at her. Blurry and fuzzy images popped and whizzed by his mind and blended together like a short, movie comprised of chopped scenes; all of them consisting of bright blonde hair and tanned skin, but it was too vague.

Why was looking at this blonde-haired girl who he didn't even know, sparking a bout of these images in his mind?

"…How do you know my name?" Sasuke whispered, barely holding back and resisting the strong urge to clamp his eyes shut and grip his hair because his head was hurting _so_ much. He didn't want to scare of this girl and have her leave him when he could possibly find answers as to the reason he ended up in this paraplegic state.

He needed to know.

"I-I…S-_Sasuke! P-P-Please! _S-Stop pl-playing around! W-we're l-l-_lovers_! We-we _love_ ea-each other!" the painful, heart wrenching sobs would have caused any littler man to cave, but Sasuke was not one of them. He needed his answers, and right now, his muddled mind simply could not wrap itself around whatever this blonde beauty was fervently saying.

Thinking that enough was enough, and that he couldn't afford a nurse coming in and reprimanding both himself as well as the girl (whom he still had not idea as to what her name was, by the way) for being awake in the night, and also scolding the girl for walking around at this time of the night when she should have been in bed, Sasuke reached out for the lithe girl and beckoned her over such that she sat on the bed facing him. Knowing that patients were not allowed to carry any potentially harmful and dangerous objects on their person, and that this girl was obviously too stricken in grief and sorrow to think about anything else, Sasuke pulled her towards his chest and tucked her golden haloed hair into his neck, painfully ignoring the pain in his head and the ringing of bells that came along with the dozens of images in his mind.

Calmly brushing her hair from her sweaty forehead, Sasuke rubbed her back as soothingly as he could, and continued to do so until he felt the shaking and shudders turn down a notch, before he decided to clear up the fog and misunderstanding (to him, anyway).

"I... I got into an accident which left me injured, and the only thing that I won't be able to help will be my legs. I'm paralyzed from the waist down." At this, Sasuke stopped, because immediately as soon as he had uttered that he was 'paralyzed', the shudders and sobs came back full force and grew ten times worse than they did before. Sasuke still couldn't understand why a stranger (to him, at least) was crying so much for him when Sasuke himself didn't know who she was. However, it was a possibility that this girl had something to do with his life, and possibly had a negative impact on it seeing as how his father had left a blonde girl out of the rather brief summary of his life, if the vivid multitude of images of blonde hair and tanned skin, along with this girl knowing who he was didn't indicate so.

Sasuke once again tried to calmly soothe the girl by rubbing his hand in circles on the girl's back. He also tried to ignore how one tiny hand has clenched and fisted his dark green dress as he continued on with his explanation. "I also, well… I forgot a lot of things, and it included my own family… They told me as much as they could, but... they didn't say anything about anyone like you. I know that you know who I am, but… I don't know who you are."

At this point, Sasuke felt the blonde in his arms still all movement, and he loosened his arms enough such that she could pull away, and she did so, only slightly.

Sasuke couldn't help but notice how pretty she looked, even though she was sporting a rather ugly-looking black eye and a bandaged nose and jaw, but he paid no heed to any of that.

"…Your brother…H-He…He d-didn't t-tell you w-who I-I w-w-was…?" the broken whisper had Sasuke stilling in his movements, and it included the rubbing of his hand on the girl's back.

Why didn't his brother tell him who this girl was? She knew his name. She was saying that they were lovers. She was _apologising_, and quite literally bawling into his chest. From what Sasuke picked up and inferred from her babbling, _she_ had had something to do with how he had turned out, how he got into the accident, how he ended up practically vegetated.

At the shake of his head, the girl looked forlornly down at her lap and quietly yet swiftly removed herself from his hold. She was still crying, although a look of contemplation had fixed itself upon her face.

"…Who are y—"

"…Just forget what—"

The two of them immediately snapped their mouths shut, and extremely curious onyx immediately locked with equally as extremely devastated and depressed cerulean.

Flashes of blonde hair and tanned skin and a faceless figure once again wreaked havoc in Sasuke's mind, and he couldn't stop the insistent bite of curiosity from nagging at him. He needed to know, and this girl _can_ help him.

"Who are you?" Sasuke asked, with much more conviction and determination. However, the girl only replied with a shake of her head and a plastered smile that was so painfully fake that had Sasuke nearly cringing in pity.

_Nearly_.

"I…It's better i-if y-you don't know who I-I a-am, S-S-Sasuke," the whispered answer was filled with so much of reluctant acceptance, and Sasuke's anger started to brew.

"What do you mean? You know who I am. You said that we're lovers. And you obviously are part of the reason as to how I ended up this way. _I deserve to know_." Sasuke had tried his hardest to keep any trace of malice from rising up and exposing itself, but his desire to know was eating him from the inside. This girl knew the answers, but was refusing to give them to him.

The girl cringed back and huddled into herself, shoulders shaking and body quaking in suppressed sobs.

It was obvious that this girl wasn't going to ever spill, and this had Sasuke sighing back in resignation, reluctantly accepting the fact that he would never be given the reasons, or even the slightest hint as to how he ended up this way. He let his stance relax, and calmly took deep breaths, feeling the uncalled-for anger draining away and leaving him with every exhale he took.

"I didn't…I didn't mean to get angry." Sasuke said, loud enough for the girl to hear. He simply gazed down at her, eyes raking over her petite and supple frame, analysing and critiquing whilst searching his mind for clues and hints and memories asides from the constant image of blonde hair and tanned skin as to _who_ and _why_, but to no avail.

So many unanswered questions, but so little answers.

"I-It's o-o-okay… C-Can we _please_… _please_ j-just talk about s-something el-else?" the question broke Sasuke out of his reverie, and he let the faintest of smiles onto his aristocratic face, breaking the hard, cold mask that he had donned on ever since the girl came in.

A dazzling grin and showcasing of straight, pearly white teeth left Sasuke speechless for a moment or two, before he caught sight of the pendant that the girl had unknowingly revealed when she sat cross-legged close enough to the lit bed side lamp.

Sasuke, as swift as he could in the state that he was in, rummaged around in the bed side drawer for the bag of his supposed valuables. Yanking the Ziploc bag from the rather shallow drawer, Sasuke unzipped it and pulled out the nearly mirror-copy of the pendant, which still had the chain looped and attached to it. He left the other contents of the bag as it was, although his smartphone was no longer working (pretty obvious seeing as how it dropped from height of possibly a few tens of metres and was crushed under a car), and his wallet contained nothing but the standard identification and credit cards (which were heavily scratched and damaged).

No pictures whatsoever.

Sasuke, after pulling out the pendant, zipped up the bag and chucked it back into the drawer, once again drawing the girl's blue gaze to what he had in his enclosed hand.

"What's t-that?" the girl questioned, and she leaned a little more forward and closer to Sasuke.

Sasuke simply kept mum, and stretched out his fingers, enough to allow the girl to see just what he had in his hands. As expected, Sasuke was rewarded with a rather sharp intake of breath and he watched, with bemused and equally as contemplating eyes as the girl reached around her neck to unclasp the necklace.

Sasuke watched, with dazed eyes, as the girl gently took his own necklace along with the pendant, and brought it together with her own. He was, for a moment, mesmerised by the scene that was playing out in front of him. As soon as the insides of both pendants made contact with one another, they seemed to have been locked firmly into place, and Sasuke could only watch transfixed and in awe at the pure magnificence that was in right in front of him; the swirling colors of both gold and silver mixing and forming beautiful ripples all around the little heart. The movement of the colored ink, as Sasuke believed them to be, caused a sudden reaction in the two stones that were put into the separate centers of the pendants, and they both started to glow a very bright white, but it wasn't blinding enough such that it hurt to look at.

Sasuke gazed back up the beautiful face of the girl, and watched s she desperately tried to hold in her rising sobs, if the faint sniffling and the rubbing of her face against her sleeves weren't indicators. And before he could help himself…

"Just…Who exactly are you?" the question was out of his mouth before he could help it, and immediately the girl recoiled and snapped the two half hearts apart. She quickly and rather ungracefully dumped the silver one back into Sasuke's lap, and, with her own gold one tied and secure around her neck, swiftly yet clumsily pushed herself off the bed, ready to leave.

Before she could even step one foot away from the bed, Sasuke had wrapped his much bigger fingers around her thin, tiny wrist, resolutely preventing her from leaving, and hence leaving his questions unanswered.

"Answer me."

Sasuke's glare hardened and grew in ferocity when the girl simply shook her head and tried in vain to rid her wrist from his firm grip. However, she soon realized that he would not ease up until he managed to squeeze something, anything, out of her.

"S-Sasuke… I-If the person y-you l-loved… if they…" the whispers that were laced with hidden pain, sorrow and desperation died down, but Sasuke prodded the girl on with a gentle squeeze of his fingers against her lithe wrist.

If he was going to get answers from her by answering a few questions of her own, then so be it.

A sigh escaped her lips, followed by the squaring of her shoulders; her stance not unlike that of someone ready to face and hear something that they knew they would rather not hear, but had to.

"If they… c-c-cheated… on you… W-would you be a-able to f-f-forgive them?"

At that, Sasuke got startled, and he abruptly let go of the girl's hand. Immediately, he gave a direct, curt and blunt "No."

And Sasuke watched, with glazed-over eyes, as the girl let out one last, heart breaking sob before breaking into a sprint for the door, and ignored how the girl had unfortunately run into one of the nurses on night duty.

The flashes of images, mostly comprising of blonde hair, tanned skin, accompanied by long, brown hair and pale, lavender eyes were playing about like a movie in his mind, chopping up scenes and strung together, and Sasuke clutched desperately at his head. The ringing of his ears blocked out the sounds of the various machinery blinking and beeping rapidly, as well as the cries of a nurse and the distinct sound of running heels on the tiled floor.

He blacked out.

* * *

**Author's Note**: Hey guys! I apologize if the chapter is not what you expected it to be! I found it a rather difficult chapter to write. I'm doing my best to keep Sasuke as in-character as possible (although i doubt that i succeeded. :( Please forgive me!) Oh yes, Sasuke had mistaken Naruto for a girl when they met again. *sweatdrop*

Confession: I'm not too happy with how this chapter turned out but hopefully it all makes more sense once the next chapter is out (basically Naruto's POV).

Anyway, I've only got two more chapters left, excluding the epilogue! :) I had this chapter already done and waiting so i decided to simply post it up. The next chapter will probably come on the 27th of November (two weeks after my exams end, because uh i haven't completed it yet. It's the sister-chapter to this one, a.k.a. Naruto's POV). After that, I'll probably give you guys biweekly updates. :D I've got ideas for drabbles (short, hopefully cute ones) as well as other stories brewing at the back of my mind, itching to be typed down and recorded on Word but they're just brief, organized chaos in my head right now. If you have any ideas or drabble prompts that you want to share with me, do drop me a PM! :) I'll be glad to receive your ideas and if you may, be graced with the honour of writing it out!

HOWEVER, I'll finish off YHMHIYP followed by LLL before working on them. I'm determined to finish all my stories first! :D

Thank you, and don't forget to tell my your thoughts on this chapter through the reviews! (Reviews make me happy! :D

Thank you,

ByakuSharingan


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